Candy Kisses
by Endless-Kaoru
Summary: There's one girl and one girl only that he wants. But what's a guy to do when that girl just brushes him off? Well, pursue on, of course! Try to guess the pairing, I dare you. Warnings for slight shonen-ai and major spoilers.
1. Prologue

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Prologue**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **None**.  
Summary:**

Candy Kisses 

**Prologue**

'_This… This is not good…'_

Mello glanced about in irritation. His comrades either didn't notice, or didn't care.

'_I was careless. And now… Now I'm on my own.'_ He swallowed, mentally going over his personal inventory, _'Augh! I don't have anything useful!'_

He stole a glance at the door, then back to what lay before him, _'No escaping now… I'll just have to tough it out.'_ He bit his lip, _'I can't say anything…'_

The door creaked open, and Mello didn't bother to look. The sound of boots thudding across the floor revealed enough. Plastic and fabric rustled, he heard a zipper, and a boot hit the floor. Another zipper, another boot hit the floor, and the newcomer sighed.

He finally turned toward the lanky figure, eyeing the plastic bag, "You stopped at that CD store again. I thought they charged too much."

"I did, and they do."

"I see."

It was only idle talk. There was no way this would continue much longer.

"…bastards are the only ones with the newest CDs, though… cause no one else will buy from them."

"Mm…" Mello's non-committal sound drew the other's attention.

"But… they had a good deal on some stuff today." The bag rustled, "Two for a buck… I got a few. Thought I might pick some up."

Mello's mouth watered as four Monster-sized Butterfinger bars came into view, but he held his tongue.

"…and I _so love_ Butterfingers…"

The goddamned tease tore open the packaging of one, chuckling lowly. Sky blue eyes met dark eyes, and the Holder-of-the-Chocolate asked slowly, "Do you want this, Mello? You look rather hungry…"

"I… I do…" he agreed, licking his lips.

Matt hit pause on his GameBoy, set it down, and turned to stare at them both, "This is so pathetic. Ari, just give him the stupid chocolate already."

Ari chuckled, waving an open chocolate in Mello's face, "Well, well! If it's so important that Mattie has to put down his dearest GameBoy and say so, then I guess I have no choice!" The four bars were dropped in Mello's lap.

"And stop calling me Mattie!" the gamer snapped.

"Right, right." Ari moved past, swiping the GameBoy and muttering, "…Mattie-boy."

Matt didn't realize his game system was gone until Ari had cleared out of the room.


	2. Chapter One

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter One**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **None**.  
Summary:** Ari: fifteen years old, horrible at math, and a music addict. L: twenty-five years old, a genius, and a world-renowned detective. Probably not the most likely of housemates…

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter One**

L pressed a button with one long, thin finger, speaking into the small microphone on the desk before him, "Watari, could you bring some tea, please?"

There was no response over the connection, and L reached to press the button again when a carefully scripted 'A' in a dark red font appeared on the screen in place of Watari's 'W'. "Watari has stepped out for a moment… Ryuuzaki-san. Um…" another brief pause, "…I… Would you like me to bring in some tea?"

The Kira Investigation team looked up at the unfamiliar feminine voice.

L considered them before responding with, "That would be nice, Ari-chan. Please do."

"Yes… I'll be right there, Ryuuzaki-san!"

There was a faint click as the connection was shut down, and Matsuda barely allowed a breath before asking, "Oh, does Ryuuzaki have a girlfriend?"

L glanced to him, not responding as he returned to poring over the case files on screen, chewing distractedly on his thumb.

Moments later, there was a soft knock on the door, and it opened to reveal what they assumed was Ari, carrying a tray with a teapot and several cups. Dark auburn hair flowed over slight shoulders, the ends brushing the tops of her hips. The shorter bangs reached about to her shoulders, errant strands partially concealing pale blue eyes.

The girl must have only been a few inches shorter than L was, and appeared to have a nice figure – although it was impossible to tell for sure when it looked like she was wearing one of L's shirts, and her jeans only clung to her hips, tight where they were quite obviously meant to be worn by a person of the opposite sex. Her feet were bare, and Raito briefly wondered if maybe she were related to L.

"Um…" she looked vaguely uncomfortable with all of the attention she was receiving as she sat the tray on a clear space of L's desk, pouring him a cup of tea. Nervously tugging on a lock of hair, she asked, "…would anyone else like some tea?"

As she refilled Matsuda's teacup, he looked up and smiled at her, thanking her politely. She looked surprised at the comment and stuttered out a soft, "No problem."

Once she'd left, Matsuda asked again, "Is she your girlfriend, Ryuuzaki? She's very cute."

L sipped his tea slowly, then responded blandly, "…She is fifteen, Matsuda."

No more was said on the subject, although it was obvious to Raito – and probably L, as well -- that Matsuda continued to believe that 25-year-old recluse and sugar-addict L was dating a pretty, young, fifteen-year-old.

Ari was sprawled out on the floor of L's hotel room that evening, typing away on her laptop, as was her usual during the hours after the Investigation team left. L sat at his own computer, doing whatever it was _he_ did with his evenings – He was under the impression that Ari believed it to be work, and really had no reason to say otherwise, simply because it often _was._

Faintly, L could hear the music playing on the girl's laptop – there was _always_ music playing from her laptop, or her MP3 player, or some other source in her vicinity. He'd never really minded, because she wasn't one to turn up the bass and shatter windows with screaming lyrics. It was usually quiet, soothing music, sometimes upbeat music, and 50 of the time accompanied by her own singing – which, he had to admit, wasn't bad either. She'd talked Watari into singing once, and although it was amusing, it had been an experience he'd rather not repeat. On another occasion, she'd talked him into singing, even going so far as to find a simple song and handing him the lyrics, and he'd given in and sang a portion of the chorus. While she'd complimented his singing, he wasn't convinced and hadn't tried again.

Her singing paused, and he glanced over to find her staring, narrow-eyed, at the laptop screen. She typed furiously, clicked something, and sighed in defeat. He wondered what she was doing, and when she had apparently become satisfied again with whatever was going on within the confines of her computer – a game, he imagined – he decided to breach a topic he'd been meaning to bring up.

"Ari-chan, would you come over here, please?"

She was at his side in an instant.

He took a moment to consider, and finally told her, "I have decided to take you to one of Watari-san's orphanages." Chewing on his thumb, he watched the shock color her eyes. It had always amazed him how her eye color somehow seemed to _move_, darkening as if some form of blue liquid that was trapped within had been stirred, kicking up the blue color that had settled. Like Kool-Aid, he decided; her eyes were like Kool-Aid, where there was too much Kool-Aid powder and it never quite mixed.

"Wh-What?! But why?" she cried, looking as if he'd slapped her. The more logical part of her mind began to shake off the initial shock, "…Did I do something wrong? L-san?"

He shook his head at her, "No, it's nothing like that." He sighed noiselessly, having already predicted her reaction. She was very childish sometimes, and very knowledgeable at other times. It seemed a precarious mix. "This Kira case is a dangerous case… more so than the others. I'm only taking measures to assure your safety in it."

"I don't care about my safety." Was her first response, obviously said without thought. Then she paused and retraced her steps, seemingly coming to a conclusion. Slowly, fear crept across her features, and she leaned forward. Those Kool-Aid eyes were stirred furiously. "…You think you'll be killed."

"The chance is not 0 on any case." It was unlike him to dodge the question, but it seemed a kinder phrase than simply agreeing.

"I don't like your numbers, L." she'd dropped the honorific. He'd only heard her do that once before, when she'd first come under his care. She had been rather dependant at that point, and he'd gone and been reckless, very nearly exposing himself to the public in order to lure out a killer. He clearly remembered the fear in her eyes when he'd returned, and the snarled words of _'Don't be such and ass, L! Don't do such stupid stuff!'_ She'd broken their silently agreed upon rule of 'hands off' and had clung to him, only releasing him when he promised to come up with a new plan.

He looked down, reaching for the plate of cake he'd been eating at the start of the conversation, "What I mean to say is… I can't say that I'm certain I'll survive this."

"I _know_ that much!" she pushed away from the desk and paced away from him, paused a few feet away, turned, and stalked back, "It's 'cause you went this far. You're so serious about this that you let the investigation team see your face… even though you think one of them was… _is_ Kira." She looked down, silencing herself and distractedly digging her big toe into the plush carpet.

L ate his cake in silence, allowing her to think through her train of thought. Finally she looked up, expression cleared of emotion, body language going lax, turning neutral. "…If Kira really can kill just by looking at faces, and he is among that investigation crew, then I'm as good as dead, too." Her hands were shoved into her pockets, and she finally relaxed into a pose that looked surprisingly similar to his own, "…So I might as well stay."

He took a bite of his cake, savoring the sugary frosting for a moment, "Is that your argument?"

She tilted her head a little, blinked, and added, "Even if your prediction is false – that Kira _does_ need a name to go with the face – then wouldn't he kill those associated with you as well, to clear his name? If people that are likely to lean towards your way of thinking remain, they could become a threat to him and his plans."

For a fifteen-year-old girl to talk about death – especially her own -- so easily, without altering her expression, she must have some admirable emotion control. He couldn't remember having that sort of control at her age, and it made him curious as to what was going through her mind.

"And who do you think I suspect?"

"Yagami Raito."

"And what do you think?" he'd always made it a point to press her to think on her own. She had a habit of following his line of thinking without any evidence to the contrary.

She again dug her toe into the carpet, pausing to collect her thoughts, before responding, "I haven't seen much of the evidence, so I can't say that I have much right to say. But… I think that Yagami Raito fits the profile." Her shoulders hunched a little, "He's intelligent… and this Kira seems to be all about 'cleansing the world of evil,' which kinda sounds like the thought process of a high school kid or college student. And… probably male…" she stopped there, looking up at the ceiling now, tilting her head a little as if trying to envision something, "…because this Kira is trying to play 'god,' and control of others is kind of a masculinity thing. Am I right?" she peered at him from the corner of her eye, but he didn't give her a reply. She moved on, drawing her own conclusions, "… I'd say there's a 46.82 chance that Kira is male."

He resisted the urge to frown. Now she was just mocking him, "The number you want is 48.79."

She took a minute to review her math and finally shrugged it off, "OK, so I got a number wrong somewhere. We both know math isn't my thing. I got my point across, and I was only… 1.96 off anyway."

"1.97."

"Shut up."

"Any more math you'd like to do? I can wait while you get a calculator."

She made a face, and her emotionless composure was gone, arms crossing across her chest in annoyance, "_Anyway_, I was _going_ to add that his handwriting shows a lot of self-control, an inflated ego, logical thinking, and close attention to detail. A long-distance planner, a touch of resentment, determination, initiative… and…." She paused, looking a little ashamed, "… a strong sexual drive. Probably repressed, going by the other traits, but…"

L just raised an eyebrow. He, quite honestly, knew little about handwriting analysis.

She forged on, "Of course, handwriting analysis isn't exactly a perfect art, and I'm far from an expert on the subject. And on top of that, I only got a glance at his handwriting – I didn't get to study it longer than maybe five minutes."

Nodding, he expertly redirected the conversation, "Your investigating skills are admirable, but you still lack the knowledge to carry out an independent analysis of a case. Which is another reason I am sending you to Whammy's House."

"What does that have to do with anything? Can't I just stay with you and observe? You're a far better example than some old man in a classroom." And now she was just getting petty. Really, he sometimes thought she had multiple personalities – the L-idolizing child that managed to rebel and cling to him simultaneously, and the investigator's mature, sharp-minded apprentice with a brain like an especially porous sponge.

"Whammy's House is much better equipped than I to teach you these things. Its main purpose, after all, is to train my successors." He turned away from her, pouring himself a cup of tea.

"But…"

Mentally, he sighed. He'd hoped that she would give in before the debate came to this, but… "To tell the truth, I lied. You're just in the way."

He kept his face turned away from her, and so he was unable to see her expression, but he imagined that she'd gone pale, and maybe those Kool-Aid eyes had been stirred again, some of the water starting to leak from them. She didn't say anything, and the thought that he'd misjudged her ability to recover from the comment crossed his mind.

Finally, he could hear her pad across the floor, collect her laptop, and walk toward the door that connected their rooms.

The door clicked open, and he heard a soft, broken-hearted, "OK, I understand. I'm sorry."

The door shut, and her bed creaked in the next room as she flopped onto it.

L let out his breath in a rush, contemplated the spot where she'd been sprawled on the floor with her laptop, and turned back to his work.

For some reason, he was unable to touch the last remnants of his cake.


	3. Chapter Two

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Two**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **None**.  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Two**

The investigation team had come and gone, earlier in the day than was usual, and then L, Watari, and Ari collected their few belongings, checked out of the hotel, and caught L's private plane at an airport.

Ari had hardly spoken – save her customary 'pleases' and 'thank yous,' because she really was too polite – since the day before after L had broken the news. The really startling thing, though, was that she didn't so much as glance at her computer or MP3 player – a feat that was equivalent to L sitting properly and eating a salad! He found the lack of music unnerving, almost, and found himself switching on a radio without noticing his actions. She didn't sing, even as one of her favorite songs came on.

The world-famous detective, who had solved cases that not even the world-renowned FBI, CIA, and Interpol could solve without his help, who could read people as if their life was stamped on their forehead in bright red ink, discovered himself to be unable to understand the black pit of depression that a fifteen-year-old girl seemed to have fallen in. Of course, he could grasp what she must've been upset over – she'd lived with and idolized him for three years now, and all of a sudden he'd revealed his fear of dying in the course of this case and shipped her off to a school where she would have little contact with him and be taught to take his place in the event of his death. It almost seemed heartless… No, to a child such as her, it _was_ heartless. Even if he did have her best interests in mind.

He thought, somewhat amusedly, that he would have made a horrible father.

'_I wonder if she hates me now?'_

The childish thought had slipped into his mind without him asking it to.

Whammy's House loomed on the horizon, backed by miles of trees and a small field where a group of boys were playing soccer. L watched, mind flitting from one thought to another like a nervous butterfly. Ari stared blankly out her own window, seated beside him in the backseat of L's limo – thought she might as well have been miles away, perhaps back in Japan, still. Or maybe she was back in the police headquarters again, sitting alone in the corner of an interrogation room, clinging to a blood-soaked stuffed dog, dark blood smeared on pale skin.

_The room was empty, the halls were empty – hell, the entire path from the front door to that one particular investigation room was empty, cleared of people and cleared of working security cameras. L had maneuvered those halls with a hooded sweater, a baseball cap, and sunglasses anyway, even wearing tennis shoes for the occasion. And then he'd entered the interrogation room, and there was this tiny girl in the corner that no one would take in, and all L could do was extend a hand and ask, "Would you like to come have some cake with me?"_

_And she'd looked up, expression frightened, and all she'd said was, "…Are there strawberries on top?"_

L bit his thumb a little harder than intended, and the bitter taste of his own blood on his tongue snapped him out of his thoughts just as the car rolled to a stop before the immense building. Watari only took a few moments to come around the car and open the door for him, and he stepped out, wiggling his toes in the unfamiliar confines of the battered tennis shoes he wore, to keep him from tracking mud. The ground _was_ a little squishy…

Ari was let out of her side of the car, and she went around to get her bags out of the trunk before Watari could – she'd always insisted on carrying her own bags, opening her own doors, and getting her own cup of tea, because, in her words _'I'm not some pampered princess.'_ This comment was always accompanied by her giving L something of a pointed look, and Watari would always respond with _'It's really my pleasure to serve both you and--'_

"L-san…"

Ari's soft voice broke into his thoughts, and he glanced at her, "Yes?"

"…Did you grow up here?" she still wasn't looking at him, eyes fixated on the children as if she were trying to picture him somewhere among them.

"I did." He agreed.

"…Can I still write to you? And Watari-san?"

"Of course."

"…And will you visit?"

He hesitated at that. He didn't really want to get her hopes up, but… "I'll see what I can do."

She didn't say anything else, just silently hefting her bags and following Watari into the building.

Mello had been surprised to see a sleek black car pull up to Whammy's House, excited beyond words to see first Watari, then L step out of said car, and then shocked to see a girl withdraw from the car, pause at L's side, then move on into the building.

If L himself was bringing a new kid in, then she must be something special. Something in him worried that she would be L's choice as successor.

Leaving the soccer match without so much as a fare-thee-well, L's second-place successor dashed into the institute in hopes of listening in on the girl's introduction to Roger. His back pressed to the wall outside Roger's office, he listened as voices floated out the slightly open door.

L was talking, something about having kept her under his care until he had an opportunity to bring her here.

Roger spoke up then, seemingly to the girl, "And what is your name, young lady?"

The voice was distant and emotionless, "Aurora Law, sir."

"It is a pleasure to have you here, Aurora. I am Roger."

She didn't respond. Mello got the annoying feeling that she'd become like another Near.

Eventually, the conversation turned away from the girl, and Mello grew bored with their idle talk. He turned to make his exit, proud of his espionage skills and wondering how he could subtly hint to L how great they were without actually mentioning that he'd been spying on L himself when—

"Hey, Mello! There you are!" Matt called out from down the hall, ruining Mello's Great Escape. Roger's office fell silent.

Roger stepped out seconds later careful to shut the door behind him, "Good afternoon boys. Did you want something?"

"No, I was just passing through." Mello answered. He didn't really think Roger would figure it out, but _L_…

The old man nodded, "Very well. While you're here, could I ask a favor of you? We have a new student, and perhaps the two of you to show her around?"

"Ah… yeah. Sure, I guess." Mello gave Matt a dirty look for ruining his escape. Matt blinked back innocently.

Roger summoned Aurora from within his office, placing her before himself. She sidestepped him when he tried to rest a hand on her shoulder.

"Boys, meet Aurora Law. Aurora, this is Mello and Matt."

She didn't respond, just bobbed her head up and down, eyes shifting back to the doorway she'd come out. A tiny amount of hurt seeped into her expression, as if she'd been expecting someone to step out and say _'Just kidding! Let's go home now!'_

Mello had seen that look on many of the new kids. Most of those that came here had only recently lost their parents, and a few were still in denial about it. Eight-year-old Matt had spent three days brooding over it, convinced that his mother was coming to pick him up, before he'd come to the conclusion that he was stuck there and had attached himself to Mello.

But this girl had been under L's care for awhile now, by the sounds of it. Surely she wasn't still in denial about whatever happened to her parents…

……

Mello stopped in his tracks, staring straight ahead. His first hypothesis simply floored him.

Was she… could she be _L's_ daughter?

Why _else_ would L take in a kid?

He stole a glance at her, completely ignoring Matt's questioning, and began to walk again, straying to just a little behind her so he could study her. She had a pretty lithe build – but most kids their age did – and her posturing looked just a little like L's. She was barefooted, and her skin was a little pale… and that's where the similarities stopped, appearance-wise. She'd said her last name was 'Law,' but not even Mello knew what L's family name was, so he couldn't use that. He'd hit a brick wall…

"So what happened to your parents, that you're here?"

Mello couldn't help but wonder if Matt had somehow tuned in to Mello's brainwaves.

The girl lifted her head a little, expression as blank as Near's – at least L showed _some_ emotion – and said slowly, voice dripping with venom, "You're pretty stupid, aren't you?"


	4. Chapter Two Point Five

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Two-Point-Five**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist. And I'm not even going to pretend I own the Titanic.

**Warnings: **None**.  
Summary:** Aurora's first night at Whammy's….

A/N: Yes, you read right. This is chapter Two-Point-Five. When I was originally writing Candy Kisses, I got stuck after chapter two and decided I would write a little insight/gag chapter, just sort of spur of the moment. At any rate, there are other "-Point-Five" chapters, too, now -- each focused on a different character. And they just sort of show up randomly.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Two-Point-Five****: Aurora-Point-Five  
**Aurora reclined back on her mattress, closing her eyes and sighing, faintly pissed. She would have much rather stayed with L than come here to this brat-infested school-house.  
She shifted to her side, trying to find a comfortable position to lay in.   
This mattress was nothing like what she was used to. It was too... soft. And the sheets were rougher than she was used to. It's not like she was particularly picky about where she slept -- she was 15. She could sleep on her feet for all she cared. But she still liked her own bed back in L's apartment. It hadn't even really been much of a bed -- just a lumpy futon with some soft, cottony sheets. L had had rather nice taste in sheets, actually.  
She rolled to her other side.  
Whoever was in the room adjacent to hers -- she thought it was that red-haired kid that the old man had introduced her to. He seemed like friends with the girly-looking-blond. She couldn't recall any of their names. Anyway, that kid was noisy. He snored like a freight train.  
L had never snored, as far as she knew. He slept like the dead... the type of dead that woke up when people bothered their graves, and they'd reach up through the grave-dirt, and grab the person by the ankles and drag them down screaming. So that that person couldn't go around bothering the neighbors' graves. Yeah, L slept kind of like that... sort of. Maybe.  
She rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling. That hadn't been the greatest comparison, she decided.  
Tucking her hands behind her head, she followed a particular crack along the plaster ceiling. It was kind of little, and so the roof probably wasn't going to come crashing down on her head anytime in the near future, but just because it _looked_ harmless didn't mean a thing. That little crack could just be the tip of the iceberg. Maybe they'd already had a contractor come in, but the contractor was kind of disgruntled, and so he just looked at it and said, "It's just a little crack." And maybe it was going to be like on the Titanic. They'd called in some experts probably, and the experts hadn't really been experts, and they'd look out over the sea and said, "It's just a little ice." And then when the captain heard that, he put the pedal to the medal (And what kind of phrase was that, anyway? It didn't even make sense!) and steered that freakishly huge ship right into an iceberg, but he didn't _know_ he'd steered into an iceberg, because there was "only a little ice" and "only a little ice" couldn't take down the monstrosity that was the Titanic.  
She rolled onto her stomach. At least then, if the ceiling started caving in, none of the dust would get in her mouth, and she wouldn't choke to death right away.  
...If the ceiling caved in, would the redhead kid get dust in his mouth and stop snoring? She sort of wanted to go over and check on him.   
Sneaking a peek at the crack in the ceiling, she decided that the crack was only in her room. So if the ceiling caved in, it would probably be contained to this room.  
... Would anyone notice? These walls were paper-thin, but maybe that kid's snoring would muffle the sound. People would hear the ceiling come crashing down on her head, and they'd think, _'Oh. That redhead-kid's snoring shook something off a shelf again.'_

Aurora glanced up at the ceiling one more time, then yawned. Well, the old man had said he would see her in the morning, so if the ceiling caved in and she couldn't get out, then he would at least come looking for her sometime before noon.


	5. Chapter Three

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Three**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **None**.  
Summary:** Mello really did hate rumors, he decided. And he really hated that neither Matt nor Aurora didn't care about rumors.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Three**

Aurora Law had tested in as fourth in line to succeed L. Her score was only two points below Matt's, and while he'd felt the threat academically, he didn't seem to let it affect his friendship with her. She didn't even pretend to care.

Despite the initial coldness with which she'd treated him, Matt and her quickly became something resembling friends. She, like Matt, preferred to play indoors most times, though she was sometimes recruited to play soccer with the boys. Some of the girls had tried to invite her to their gatherings – picnics, board games, sleepovers, and sitting on the sidelines of soccer games 'admiring the scenery' – but she never seemed at ease with them, and eventually just started turning them down completely. The girls quit asking, and nasty rumors began to spread about her.

Most times, when Mello went outside to play soccer, he would return to the common room afterwards to find Matt and Aurora sitting together in some semblance of "studying" or playing video games. Seeing them always left Mello feeling somewhat disquieted, and he would find an excuse to join them or break them up.

Today was one of those times.

Aurora was holding Matt's Nintendo DS in her hands, punching buttons and watching the screen with the same intensity that Matt had. The boy was kneeling behind her, an arm over one shoulder in order to point something out on the game and his chin rested on her other shoulder. Scattered around them, books and papers and pencils, along with Aurora's ever-present laptop, sat neglected.

And this cozy little scene was set in the pair's usual corner of the room, near a big picture window that looked out over the soccer field, and played out to the music broadcasted from aforementioned laptop.

Mello frowned to himself.

Said blonde neared the two redheads, standing on the outskirts of what looked like the ruins of a paper-delivery truck's collision with the school supply truck, glancing down at half-completed mathematical equations, research papers, and a crude sketch of what may have been the math teacher surrounded by Aurora's tiny, neat script and Matt's barely legible scrawl. Mello turned his eyes away, "Studying again?"

Aurora looked up slowly, not looking surprised at all to see him – had she noticed his approach? – and Matt responded with surprise, "Mello! Don't sneak up on people!"  
"Ah… we were, but…." Aurora disregarded Matt's surprise and set aside the DS, leaning forward onto her hands and knees to reach for a particular paper among the crash site, mindless of the fact that she was simultaneously giving Matt a rather nice view of her ass and Mello the opportunity to stare down the front of her shirt. The blonde fought down his blush and averted his eyes to the far wall until she'd found the paper and settled back in her place in front of Matt. No wonder Matt hung out with her so much.

She frowned a little at Mello, and he wondered if he were blushing, before she continued, "Could you help us with this problem? Neither one of us could figure it out."

He looked to where she was pointing, took a moment to decipher the handwriting, and found a space among the mess to settle down between the pair and lay out the math book to direct them.

Mello really did hate rumors, he decided. And he really hated that neither Matt nor Aurora didn't care about rumors.

There had always been rumors about Matt and Mello being something beyond friends. Both boys would deny the rumors, of course, because they were _not true_, but the rumors persisted anyway.

Aurora's arrival on the scene hadn't helped in the least. Rumors of "Mello x Matt" or "Matt x Mello" carried on, but there was also this new rumor of a threesome that included Aurora in their midst. And, with the formation of a friendship between Matt and Aurora, that friendship turned into deep bonds of love and passionate nights in the minds of Whammy's House's local gossips.

Mello was also quick to deny these rumors, too. Even the ones he wasn't involved in. But he'd seem Matt's reaction when a girl – one of his admirers – had approached him to ask, "Is it true? Are you really going steady with Aurora?"

Matt had almost looked surprised, and a light blush had formed on his face. He took longer than usual to deny it.

Mello couldn't be sure that the girl had picked up on it, but he certainly had. And it furthered the annoying suspicions in his mind that the rumor was true, to a point.

Matt and Aurora did, after all, tend to spend many of their unsupervised free-time hours together, and Matt _was_ the only one that was allowed to get within the invisible lines of her personal space and have any form of physical contact with her. Of course, there were times when not even Matt was allowed near her – like when she was concentrating, for instance. Mello could sometimes sit near her, but he would still get pushed away if he were to lay a hand on her.

The pair also had bedrooms next to each other, at the very end of a hall where they were, for the most part, secluded. If they were to visit each other in the night….

Managing to wrestle a few moments of Matt's time away from schoolwork, video games, and Aurora, Mello asked rather bluntly of his friend, "Is there something going on between you and Aurora?"

Matt blinked at him, looking startled, and asked, "Do you really believe all those rumors?"

They were in Matt's room, away from prying eyes, and Mello was glad for it, "Answer the question!"

The redheaded boy took a moment to consider before replying evasively, "No… Not really…"

"What's 'not really' supposed to mean, huh?!" and now he was 100 _sure_ that Matt's one purpose in life was to drive him up a wall.

"It means 'not really.'" Mello's eyebrow began to twitch at the comment, and Matt took a step away before elaborating, "I just think she's a little cute, that's all! Geez, what are you getting so worked up over? It's like you're jealous or something!"

Mello paused at that, blinking, then snapping back, "I… I'm not _jealous!_ Why would I be jealous of _Aurora!_? I just wanted to know why you hang all over each other!"

"Um…" there was a soft tapping on the doorway, and both boys turned to Aurora. She had her head tilted to the side, looking a little concerned, "I'm sorry for intruding, but… I heard my name…" When there was no reply, she looked down, absently tugging a lock of hair, "…Uh… is something the matter? Did I do something wrong?"

Mello was the first to move into action, stepping down from his spot on Matt's bed and making a quick entry, "Don't worry about it. It's _nothing._" His voice dripped with sarcasm, and she stared after him.

After a moment, she turned her eyes to Matt, and he frowned a little at the uncertainty and hurt in her pale blue orbs.

"He's just being pissy for some reason. Maybe Near beat him at something again. I dunno." He shrugged one shoulder and reached for a book on his desk. Switching gears, he grinned, "Hey, I found this book in the library, and it looked pretty cool. Wanna read it with me?"

The uncertainty drained from her expression, and she smirked a little, "Sure, but don't complain when I want to turn the page before you're done."

"I won't." he promised, settling on the floor beside his bed, "I just won't let you turn the page."

She chuckled and climbed onto his bed, flopping on her stomach to read over his shoulder.

Mello, meanwhile, seethed in his room. He didn't know _why_ he was pissed off, he just knew that he _was_ and that it had _something_ to do with Aurora. For once in his life, he cursed L; how _dare_ he bring that girl here, and then just disappear again.

He flopped on his bed, staring at the ceiling. If only L was here. L would be able to figure this mess out. He'd realize that that girl was causing problems here, and he'd take her to some other orphanage. Or dump her on the streets.

The boy frowned a little, mind going in little circles. Why should _he_ care if that girl was here or not? Why couldn't he just ignore her like everyone else that annoyed him?

And why the hell did he _care_ if Matt wanted to play with her?


	6. Chapter Four

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Four**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **some light cussing and violence, a bit of boy-kissing-boy**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Four**

'_There she is again…'_ Mello thought moodily, eyes resting on the pair at the other end of the library. They were studying again, having had conquered a small table in a fairly secluded corner. Matt got up to retrieve a book from the shelves behind them. He was still searching for whatever book he wanted when Aurora glanced up and called to him with those maddeningly soft tones she always used. Matt responded – what was he, a dog? – and returned to her.

Mello frowned rather darkly, watching from the corner of his eye as he pretended to read. Matt leaned over, balancing with an arm on the table, his face coming down to her level to peer at her work from over her shoulder. His other arm lay passively over her shoulders. She pointed out something on the paper, then turned her head toward him to await instruction. He answered easily, smiling, and turned to say more.

His lips brushed hers. They froze.

Mello grit his teeth. To the other students, it looked as if he were contemplating murder.

Matt was first to recover, and he almost curiously leaned into her a little, oblivious to the others students in the library. His hand moved to the back of her head, eyes sliding closed.

Mello didn't even bother to pretend reading anymore. He narrowed his eyes at them, and though he couldn't see Aurora's face, he could imagine it. She was probably enjoying this.

All at once, every muscle in the girl's back tightened, and she shoved Matt away, standing. Matt blushed hotly, bowing his head, and Mello could faintly hear him apologize.

"I… uh… I'm going to the bathroom." She managed lamely, and darted from the room before he could reply. Matt stared after her a moment, then sat down, attempting to drown himself in his workbook.

Mello's blood boiled. He got up to leave before either of them noticed him.

Matt and Aurora had been almost forcefully dragged from the house and recruited to play soccer that evening. Aurora was acting as if the scene in the library hadn't happened, and it was obvious that Matt was trying to do the same. _'And failing miserably, I might add.'_ Mello thought viciously as he waited impatiently as Matt and some other boys tried to convince the girl to join – because she was pretty good, for a girl. She was always used to balance the scale, because the boys always said that she was almost as good as Mello was.

"I'm sorry, I think I'll sit this one out…I'm not feeling well." She was always so polite… little brat.

"Aww, come on! Please?" one of the boys whined.

"Yeah! If you don't play, we'll lose for sure!" another cried, "Mello's so good, we won't have a chance without you!"

She shook her head, offering a small smile, "You should have a more positive attitude. I'm sure you can win if you try."

Mello fought the urge to gag.

"Come on, Aurora. I'm playing, too. What are you gonna do otherwise?" Matt chuckled, jerking his thumb toward the group of female onlookers, "Play with the girls?"

"Matt…" she sighed faintly.

Mello finally snapped, marching up to them, "If she doesn't want to play, then that's her loss. Forget her, it's not like we need her anyway. I'll switch teams mid-game, so let's start already!"

Aurora twitched almost violently at his complaint, looked down to the ground, and said, "I'm… going inside now. Thank you for inviting me, but maybe another time." She turned and dashed into the building again.

Matt gaped, looking from her retreating figure to Mello, "That was pretty harsh, Mello… What if you hurt her feelings?"

"If you're so worried about her, then you can leave, too. You're not that good anyway, so it's not like we'll miss you." The blonde shot back coldly.

Matt blinked in shock, and then his expression hardened, "Fine. If that's the way you feel, I won't bother you anymore. Goodbye, Mello." And he turned and stormed into the house after Aurora.

The boys that had witnessed the fight stared uncertainly at the blonde until he snapped, "What the hell are you staring at? Are we going to play or not?"

"Aurora…?" Matt knocked hesitantly on Aurora's bedroom door, and when he got no response, he turned the knob and entered anyway. She sat on the floor by her bed, knees drawn up to her chest and fingers curled around the plush body of a stuffed dog. Her face was hidden by her hair.

"Aurora, come on… I don't know why Mello's been such a jerk lately, but you don't have to get upset…" he knelt in front of her, "He's a really emotional guy, you know? He says a lot of stuff he doesn't mean…"

She didn't respond.

"…Let's just forget about it. We can go play Mario or something…"

Still nothing. He sighed and sat beside her, draping an arm over her shoulders, "Come on, don't cry. I don't know what to do if you cry…"

She laughed weakly, and he was proud of himself for that much. He paused to think up something else she might find funny.

She shifted closer to him and pressed her face against his shoulder, hands curled between them as if she didn't know what to do with them.

He heard her mumble, "I wish L was here…"

He felt a flash of annoyance at that, but didn't say anything.

Matt scowled at the pilfered cigarette and lighter in his hand. Some kid had gotten his hands on them, and offered them to him, saying, "It'll clear your head."

'_Well, what the hell… One won't hurt.'_ He hesitated before holding the cigarette between his lips and fumbling with the lighter.

He hadn't even gotten the stupid thing lit when someone discovered his hiding place among the trees. He looked up guiltily at Mello.

Mello saw the cigarette first, "What the hell is that, Matt?! Are you stupid?!" he swiped the small paper-wrapped tobacco product from him and scowled darkly at it.

Matt frowned and looked away, pocketing the lighter, "What do you want?"

"Did Aurora give you this?" Mello waved the cigarette under his nose before chucking it as far as he could into the woods.

"No. What makes you think that?" Matt continued to not look at him, and that infuriated the blonde.

"Damnit, look at me when you talk to me!" he grabbed the other boy's chin and forcefully turned his head. Matt glared at him, clenching his jaw beneath Mello's fingers.

"What do you want? If you just came here to yell at me again, I'm going to leave."

"I want… I…" Mello sputtered for a moment, at a loss as to what to say, and finally spat out, "I wanna say I'm sorry."

"You're lying. I've known you ling enough to know that." Matt tried to jerk his jaw out of Mello's grip, but the other boy refused to release him, "Damnit, Mello, that hurts! Let go!"

"Shut up! If I do that, you're just going to leave!"

"What's your problem, anyway? What did Aurora ever do to you?!" Matt brought his hands up to pry off Mello's fingers, and when the other boy finally released him, he stood and took a step away, balling his fists. He watched Mello stare at his jaw, and could imagine that his face was bruised now, too.

For several long minutes, Mello didn't say anything. He just stood, looking a little frustrated and regretful as he stared at the quickly forming ugly bruises that decorated Matt's pale skin.

"Well?!" Matt stomped his foot in impatience.

In one swift movement, Mello strode forward, grabbed Matt by the shirt collar, and dragged him forward. Staring directly into his eyes, he told him, "My problem is _you_." Before the redheaded boy had a chance to reply, he slammed their mouths together, kissing him inexpertly. His lip collided with Matt's teeth, and he tasted blood, but he didn't really care. Matt froze up, making some odd noise at the back of his throat. Mello swiped his tongue across the other boy's tongue, like he'd seen in a movie once.

Matt jerked, pushing him back, breathing heavily, "Wh-What…?"

Mello frowned at his feet, face red. Before Matt could say more, the blonde turned and disappeared into the woods.

Matt was left to stare in confusion after him.

He wasn't sure how long he'd sat there, but it was dark out when Aurora pushed through the brush and found him. Her eyes swept over his face, "Are you okay, Matt? What happened?"

He jumped, looking up to her, and replied lamely, "I got in a fight…"

She knelt and rubbed a bit of blood from his face with her sleeve, "Come on, you go to your room and I'll ask Roger for some ice."


	7. Chapter Five

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Five**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **None, really. **  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Five**

"Hey, Eliza…" tiredly, Matt walked past the open door of Eliza's room on the way to his own room. Eliza was another girl at Whammy's House that he was on friendly terms with, though he couldn't say she was his closest friend. But their rooms were close together, and they went to each other to talk out their problems from time to time or for help on homework. Today, he didn't really feel like discussing what had happened. His head was just too full, and he wanted to sort some of it out first.

"Matt! Wait up!" he heard her chair scrape across the floor, and she caught up to him easily. She had a book in her hand, and he imagined that she wanted help with something, but he never got a chance to find out what. She'd spotted the bruises on his face already.

"Oh my… Matt, what happened? Are you okay?" she reached out and lifted his chin, careful of the bruises.

He allowed her to inspect the damage before turning away, "It's nothing. I just got in a fight with Mello, that's all. Aurora went to get ice, and I'm just going to lie down."

"…On the soccer field? I heard about that."

"No, just awhile ago."

She frowned a bit, "What happened between you two?"

"It's nothing, I mean it." He began to move toward his room again, and she followed him, "Mello's just in a bad mood today and I did something stupid and pissed him off. So he hit me."

He was in his room now, with her leaning on the doorframe.

"But he's been pissed at you for awhile now." She pointed out, "Not just today."

He tugged up the hem of his shirt, starting to strip it off, and paused, calling back to her, "Hey, do you mind? I'm trying to change here."

"No, actually, I don't mind." She replied with a smirk, and he pushed her out and shut the door.

Through the door, she called, "So tell me the truth this time. What's going on?"

"I said it's nothing!" He replied, voice a little muffled. She heard his belt hit the floor with a thud and giggled a little at the mental image it provoked.

"If it was nothing, then Mello wouldn't have hit you."

He didn't reply. Finally, after a while, he opened the door, decked out in a black tank top and too-big grey pajama pants that hung off his hips. She eyed the waistband of his blue and red printed boxers. Was that Mario she saw, staring from beneath those pants?

He cleared his throat and she looked up quickly, realizing she'd been staring. He frowned a little, cheeks tinted pink, but didn't say anything about it, just adjusted his pajama pants. Mario left her sight and, she assumed, advanced to the next level.

"Really, Eliza. I don't want to talk about it right now. And it seems like something I should talk to Mello about, anyway. So can we just drop it for now?" Something in his voice made her decide to trust him on this, and she backed off.

Switching topics smoothly, she smiled brightly and asked, "So! Mario boxers?"

His face reddened, "Shut up! Mario is cool!"

Aurora moved down the hall, carrying a handful of bandages in one hand and a bag of ice and a damp washcloth in the other. She paused for a moment upon seeing a girl standing in Matt's doorway and trying to remember who she was… she'd seen her before, but wasn't sure if they'd ever been formally introduced. But she remembered that she had green eyes.

The black-haired girl with green eyes laughed at something, and Aurora decided that she was there with Matt's permission and carried on, pausing to tap her lightly on the shoulder.

"Um… excuse me, please."

"Huh? Oh, sorry." The dark-haired girl moved aside, and Aurora thanked her softly and moved toward Matt, barely giving his attire a glance but managing to notice a scratch on his arm.

"Here's your ice. I told Roger that you tripped over a branch and fell. He gave me a bunch me a bunch of band-aids." She stared at them in her hand and then maneuvered around the mess on his bedroom floor in order to set them on a corner of his desk, "I'll leave them here, because I don't use them anyway." She returned with a single bandage and carefully bathed the cut on his arm with the washcloth before placing the bandage over it.

He blinked down at her, holding the ice to his jaw, and said vaguely, "You should be a nurse."

She looked perplexed, "It's just a band-aid." Patting it once to be sure it stuck, she pushed at his shoulders, "No go lay down and go to bed. It'll lower your blood pressure, and the bruising won't be as bad."

"Really?"

"Hell if I know. But it won't hurt to try, and it's late anyway. Now, bed!" She pushed harder on his shoulders until he was sitting on the edge of his bed, and then proceeded to push him down and gather up his sheets from where they'd been kicked off the bed, tossing them over him.

He smirked, "Aw, no good-night kiss?"

She propped up his ice bag with the pillow – giving him an up close view of the front of her t-shirt in the process – and patted him on the head, confirming, "No, no good-night kiss." Turning her back, she picked her way across the room, noticing the other girl still standing there, and called 'Good Night, Matt' as she hit the lights. The other girl echoed her, and shut the door.

"Aurora."

The red-haired girl twitched at her name, surprised, and looked to the other girl. Still couldn't place her name…

"Do you know what happened?"

She tilted her head, "He only said that he had a fight with Mello. Do you think it's something different?" Aurora faltered, "Ah, sorry… What's your name?"

"It's Eliza." The so-far-unknown girl answered simply, offering a brief smile of greeting, "We haven't really met yet, but your reputation precedes you. Aurora Law, right?"

"Yes. It's nice to meet you, Eliza."

"You too." The girl was back to business instantly, "I heard you were there when they fought on the soccer field earlier… what were they fighting about?"

Aurora looked surprised by the news, "I… I wasn't there. I mean, I _was_, but I didn't see them fighting." She looked thoughtful, "I didn't want to play soccer, and Mello came over and told me to just leave, 'cause I wasn't needed. So I left, and a little while later Matt found me and said he didn't know why Mello was upset. He didn't say anything about having fought with him…"

Eliza nodded curtly, "I'm going to go look for Mello and get an answer out of him." She was about to walk away, but them paused, "If Mello shows up here, then don't let him near Matt. And don't let Matt know about it."

Aurora looked down, "Yeah… okay." She hesitated, "Um, Eliza…?"

"Yeah?"

"…I think this may be my fault…"

Eliza was quiet for a minute, then replied with, "Why?"

Aurora averted her gaze guiltily, pressing her index fingers together, "…I don't know. It just seems like it's my fault."

The black-haired girl nodded a little, and told her, "We'll see. Guard the door."

"Y-Yeah…"

Eliza turned and rushed off to search for Mello, leaving Aurora to slide down the wall and sit on the floor beside Matt's bedroom door. She could hear his snoring from inside.


	8. Chapter Six

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Six**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist. Also, Eliza is my friend's creation, not mine.

**Warnings:**cussing, slight sexual innuendo, angsty stuffage**  
Summary:** Eliza sets out to confront Mello, leaving Matt unawares.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Six**

Eliza pushed aside a branch, glancing about impatiently. Some kids had said they'd seen Mello head this way… But where was he?

"Mello! I know you're out here somewhere! Come out!"

"Whaddya want, squirt?" Mello glared down at her from the lower branches of a tree, just above her head.

She jumped, "You idiot! You scared me half to death!"

He huffed and peeled some bark off the branch he straddled, letting it drop. Some of it fell in the girl's hair, and she picked it out irritably, "Get down here! I have a bone to pick with you!"

He contemplated her a moment before finally replying, "No."

She scowled up at him, crossing her arms upon realizing that Mello could probably look directly down her tank top, "Tell me what you did to Matt, and why?"

Mello blinked blankly at her a moment, before saying, "It's none of your business."

"It is my business! He's my best friend, and he's been upset about_something_, and then today he comes in bruised with blood on his shirt, and tries to blame it on himself! I want to know what's going on!"

The blonde quieted, staring upwards, "…He was upset, huh? I thought he would be…"

"Then why did you… do whatever you did!" she stomped her foot in impatience, "What the hell did you do to him, Mello?!"

"It's not like I hurt him on purpose…"

"Tell me what you _did_!"

Mello swung his head around and snapped, "I kissed him, okay?!"

She stopped, staring at him, "Y… You… huh…?"

"I_said_ I kissed him." Mello shifted uncomfortably and crossed his arms, face turning an interesting shade of red.

"Wh…_Why?!_"

"_Why?_ Because I wanted to. You gotta problem with it?"

"I… uh…" she scratched her head a little, "…I don't know what to say to that. I guess I didn't know you were that way…"

"I'm NOT!" he denied quickly.

"Uh… okay…" she nodded a little, taking a step backwards, "I'm, uh… I'm gonna go back inside now."

"Hey."

She jumped.

"Don't tell anyone."

"R-Right. Not a soul."

"….Thanks."

She left quickly.

* * *

Hands grappled at cloth and nailsteeth_claws_ scraped at flesh and fresh blood ran streams and blood and sweat stained wood floors and _ohgodIcantbreathImgoingtodie!_

A piercing scream tore through the air, and a hand slapped over Aurora's mouth. Her eyes snapped open and she thrashed wildly; an arm curled around her chest, and she tried to scream again, flailing hands colliding with something solid.

"Aurora! Aurora, cut it out, it was a bad dream!" a vaguely familiar voice shouted in her ear, and she threw all her weight against the restraining arms and broke free, turning and wildly throwing a punch at whoever was at the other end of those arms. Matt ducked the badly aimed punch easily and caught her fist, tugging on the hand and making her stumble forward.

He twisted the limb behind her and held it there, panting heavily, "Goddamnit, what the hell are you doing out in the hallway?" Matt glanced down the hall and was rather displeased to find most of the kids had come out of their rooms and were murmuring amongst themselves.

"Ow… Matt…" she flexed her muscles under his hand.

"Are you gonna go crazy again?" he asked, rather annoyed at being woke up. He was only _trying_ to get her calmed down, and she had to try and punch him!

She shook her head and he released her, pushing her through the open door of his room and glaring fiercely at the kids who snickered.

"What's going on? Matt?" Eliza pushed through the group of departing kids and, seeing Matt in the hall in only his pajama pants and boxers, automatically assumed the worst.

He moved toward her, grabbed her by the arm, and half-dragged her into his room, looking tired and pissed off.

The kids still in the hallway began to giggle.

Matt slammed the door shut and moved to massage his temple as he faced the girls. Aurora sat curled in a ball on his floor, with Eliza seated on his bed looking somewhere between star-struck and embarrassed. He followed her gaze to his desk, where a pair of black silk boxers, gifted to him by Mello one year, -- complete with a picture of mistletoe printed in a strategic location above the fly and MAD MATT in glaring red lettering across the thighs -- draped oh-so-beautifully across his tabletop lamp. He snatched them from their location of display and stuffed them in a drawer.

"Damnit, you, eyes on me. Me!" he snapped, and when her eyes wandered to his bared chest he snapped his fingers, "No. Up here. My face is_up here_." She snapped to attention. Aurora was off in her own world, but at least she had the decency to stare at her own toes.

"All right, now tell me what's going on." He asked, paused, and glanced to Aurora, "Hey, uh, you okay?"

She blinked up at him, looking as if she'd just noticed his presence, and glanced around, "...Why am I in your room?"

"Why were you _outside_ my room?"

She rose an eyebrow, "I'm not your pet. I _do_ have a life, you know."

"I didn't mean that, I meant… augh!" he turned on Eliza, "Tell me what's going on."

She shifted her eyes to the wall, "…What are you talking about?"

"I'm not stupid, Eliza." He deadpanned, "I heard you two conspiring outside my room. You said you were going to look for Mello."

"…Homework help." She replied vaguely.

"It's midnight, and you never ask Mello for homework help."

She didn't reply.

"Playing renegade cop again? This has nothing to do with you, Eliza, I told you that."

"…I just did." She kept her eyes averted, fiddling with the hem of her shirt.

Matt frowned in annoyance, "Why is it you have to stick your nose in other people's business? Mello and I have fought before, and you've never said anything before."

"But it's different this time!" she protested, standing.

"How is this any different?" he snapped, and there was banging on his door seconds before it opened.

Roger surveyed the room, "What's going on here, Matt? Is there a problem?"

"No. Eliza was just _leaving_." The boy replied.

"Yes. I was." She took a step forward, paused, and nudged Aurora with her toe, "Hey. You're not spending the night here. Get up."

The red-haired girl yelped in surprise, snapping out of her own little world again, and after a moment to process things, got up and followed her.

Matt grabbed Aurora's arm as she passed, fully aware of Roger's eyes on him and not really caring, "Hey, you gonna be all right? You seem kinda spacey…"

"Uh… yeah…" she shifted her weight, "Thanks… But it was just a bad dream."

"…yeah. 'Night." He released her, and she nodded before maneuvering around him, pausing in front of Roger.

"Roger, I apologize for the commotion. I had a nightmare." She told him before leaving.

* * *

Matt sighed and lay back on his bed, arms crossed behind his head. It had been a long, exhausting day, and he was definitely _tired_, but he just couldn't bring himself to shut his eyes and fall asleep. He could still feel Mello's lips on his own, and he wasn't sure what to make of that.

His fingers splayed over his lips in thought.

He'd never really thought that Mello felt that way toward him. Well, he'd never really thought that Mello felt that way toward _anyone_. Except maybe his work. And he always had a certain _passion_ about competing against Near, but…

Matt shook his head violently and groaned. He did _not_ want to think about _that_.

Taking a deep breath and resting his hand across his stomach, Matt tried to clear his mind. It didn't work.

In the room next door, Aurora's, he could hear her dresser drawers slide shut, and he imagined that she must be changing for bed. For a brief moment, his teenage mind tripped and fell into the gutter, but he pulled himself out in embarrassment before the thought could go further than his head. He'd accidentally grabbed her chest in that struggle, he realized; he couldn't remember the sensation.

An echo of her scream replayed in his mind, and he shivered a little. He'd actually heard odd noises outside his door, like a hurt animal or something, and when he stepped out and saw the girl curled up on the floor beside his door, he'd known right away that she was having a nightmare. She hadn't screamed until he'd tried to wake her up, and all he could think of was to cover her mouth and hold her still before she hurt herself or him. It had obviously only frightened her more.

… He wanted to know what had happened in her dream, and if it was related to her strange ways of thinking.

She had explained it once to him, in rather abstract terms, while they were working on a puzzle she'd gotten her hands on. A picture of puppies in a Christmas basket. Something about it must have set something off in her, because she'd pushed the box across the floor at him and stared up over his GameBoy like a small child, saying,_"Matt, will you play this with me?"_ and it had been strange, because she had specifically said that she didn't like board games or 'boring' puzzles.

At the time, he was _sure_ that if she asked him to strip down to his boxers and do the chicken dance in the front yard, then he would have done so with out a second thought, so long as she looked at him like she did just then. Fortunately for his pride, all those doe eyes wanted was to put together a puzzle with her. And so, he did.

_We talked about anything and everything, mindlessly piecing together a ridiculously simple puzzle. She kept her eyes firmly on said puzzle._

"_Matt… you know how on TV, they always show little kids getting puppies for Christmas?" She had asked rather suddenly, placing a puzzle piece in the center of a puppy's forehead. He nodded. Her fingers sifted deftly through loose pieces before she continued, "…Most of those puppies – the ones that real kids get – end up neglected and cast off. Cause people forget that puppies cost money and time, and they grow up."_

_He nodded again. He'd gone to the pound once with Roger and Mello, to take in a stray puppy that had wandered onto the property. No one had claimed it when they put up fliers, and so Roger had decided that it was best to take the animal to the pound. Matt – young at that time, and still fairly new to Whammy's House – had pleaded to keep the animal, reasoning that he would give up his allowance in order to take care of it. He'd lost, and would visit the dog every weekend, when the teachers drove the kids into town for a chance to take a break. One weekend, he went and the dog was gone. He asked a person at the front desk when it would be back – because sometimes people took it out for walks – and was informed rather coldly that it had been put down, because no one wanted it._

_Aurora was speaking, and he realized he'd missed some of what she was saying, but caught, "People are unreliable."_

"_What?"_

"_People lie, cheat, and steal with no regard for others. Everything they do has a greedy ulterior motive. There is no exception."_

She wouldn't say anything further, and Matt hadn't pressed for information. By the time the puzzle was complete, she had returned to the quiet, hurt child she was at the time, not long after she'd first come. She simply _could not_ trust like others did. It made him wonder what her 'greedy ulterior motive' was for hanging out with him.

He quieted his mind, just listening to his own breathing and the trees outside his window. On the other side of the wall separating his and Aurora's room, her bed creaked, and he imagined that he could hear her sigh in her sleep. But maybe it was the wind.

He finally managed to doze off, provocative images of Aurora and Eliza and Laura Croft moving through his hormonal teenage brain.


	9. Chapter Seven

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Seven**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist. Also, Eliza is my friend's creation, but I have permission to use her.

**Warnings:**angst, perversion of the Shakespearean language, sexual innuendo, cussing, and general crack.** .  
Summary:** Whammy's lets the kids loose on the nearest town! And what better than an arcade and milkshakes to disperse the muddied up relationships?

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Seven**

Matt had never, in all of the fourteen years that he was alive (at least the ones he remembered), imagined that he could be so utterly and completely _bored_. Least of all on a Sunday, when every resident of Whammy's Orphanage was given their weekly allowance, loaded on a bus, and shipped off to the nearest town for a day of rest and relaxation. Smaller children were sorted into groups and accompanied by a teacher, but the older kids were the ones to learn the true meaning of freedom during these trips. Matt had, since the second month of this year, been a part of this exclusive 'club' and had excitedly adventured the town with Mello and, occasionally, some other boys. He'd (not very) smoothly hit on girls that were far beyond his grasp, spent five straight hours in an arcade, and had his games taken away for an entire month by a teacher for shoplifting a candy bar. His initiation ceremony was completing a dare to take off his shirt, jump up on the fountain that stood in front of their favorite arcade, and sing the chorus of "Bad Boy" by Cascada while swinging his shirt overhead. (He'd done so, keeping his eyes firmly on the ground, and had ended up dropping his shirt in the fountain. The boys had accused him of staring at Mello.)

But Matt wasn't sure how to act around his closest friend anymore. Did a kiss make them a couple? Were they supposed to hold hands and share a milkshake at the ice cream parlor? But he didn't like Mello that way. Should he pretend it never happened? That seemed to be the best route in the name of keeping his sanity intact. At least until this blew over or he thought of something better.

He was far from naïve about how a normal, loving relationship between a girl and a guy went. What he didn't know was how a one-sided relationship between a guy and another guy should go – especially when one of those guys had his heart set on another, much-less-male friend. After a few long moments of pondering this and wondering how it was he'd managed to get caught in such a mess, he decided that maybe he was thinking too much and should loosen up. Maybe something like… oh, say, _an arcade_ would do the trick.  
Standing before the gaming center, Matt silently thanked the gaming gods that whoever ran this town had thought to build a sacred chapel wherein gamers of all ages and types and levels could come together in harmonious competition and practice their religion! Surely someone up there loved him.  
Matt had never been one for poetry or prose, but he caught himself thinking,_'O, my beloved arcade… wherefore doest thou belong but deep within my grasp?'_ Aurora would have called that a perversion of the classics and then laughed, had she heard it.  
Walking inside almost reverently, he looked about in anticipation, trying to decide on what to play first. A classic? One of the latest and greatest?  
It was when his eyes had landed on the DDR stage, where a crowd was already enthralled by the moves of some hot-shot novice, that Matt had made his decision. Look out, kid, Matt's in town.  
He managed to pushed through the crowd in order to better observe the movements of his soon-to-be competitor, but instead found himself staring at the one dancing closest to him. The dancer turned sideways in a rather showy move, and he must have caught her eye, because she began to laugh and called out, "Matt! I'm playing you next, no complaints!" she sucked in a breath and added, "Keep the redhead there! Mattie-boy will show you some _real_ dancing skills!" and she was laughing breathlessly again, moving without a hitch in sync with the on-screen arrows as if they were programmed into her from birth. A light sheen of sweat shone on her skin, catching the colorful lights of the game, and Matt wondered briefly if the gaming god had sent him his very own angel in a nicely fitted t-shirt.  
And then it occurred to him that the gaming angel had not only challenged his dancing skills, but had called him 'Mattie-boy' and his competitive spirit overrode his fantasy and pushed him to study her strengths and weaknesses.

* * *

Leaning on the foam-covered bar that bordered the dance pad, Matt panted for breath, "You're… pretty good…"

"You… too…" she pressed her back to the DDR screen, arms up and tucked behind her head. Her chest rose with each deep breath, and sweat droplets caressed her skin, and Matt was disappointed because he was too tired to appreciate it fully.

The audience broke into a round of applause as the winner's name flashed across the screen above their heads. The pair looked up, and Aurora only managed half a smile when it was her own alias -- Miheal.

"What a weird name…" Matt swiped sweat from his brow, "Why 'Miheal'?"

"Miheal is an angel of sensuality and fidelity." She offered.

"It fits."

She watched him look her up and down and made a face, but didn't otherwise protest. He wasn't the only one, anyway.

"…Another go?" she asked lazily.

He pulled off his vest, "…Yeah."

She turned to the monitor, "You pick the song. I don't care."

Shifting to stomp the arrows on the game board, he flipped through the songs, "Loser buys the winner a drink."

"I like strawberry milkshakes." She yawned, whipping her hair into a ponytail.

He chuckled, "Don't get cocky."

"I'm a girl. I can't."

Matt stumbled, face reddening. She only laughed.

"Look, look, Mello!" someone's voice yelled out over the crowd, making both dancers turn their heads, "There must be a competition! Let's go watch!"

"Let go of me! Leave me alone, you crazy witch!" and that was most definitely Mello's voice shouting now.

Matt saw them first, spotting Eliza clinging to Mello's arm and dragging him along in her excitement. Mello, in all his fury, reminded Matt of a dandelion. A very, very, pissed off dandelion.

He didn't have time to consider anymore when the game suddenly started and Aurora yelped, "Geez, give some warning, Matt!" He turned his back and stumbled into the dance moves. The crowd cheered.

Mello resisted as Eliza dragged him into the crowd that surrounded the DDR stage. He didn't want to be here in this stupid crowded arcade! So what if some snot-nosed brats were dancing?! Why did _he_ have to go with? They finally emerged at the front of the crowd, and Eliza said something, but he didn't catch it because he was busy cussing out the kid that had just grabbed his ass. Once the kid had been thoroughly humiliated, Mello looked to the dancers… and his jaw dropped. Or, it would have, if it weren't for his amazing control over his facial expression. As it was, he looked as if someone had punched him. Hard.

There was only one thought in his head: _'Matt looks damn sexy…'_

His eyes shifted to Aurora on a whim, and he decided then that she wasn't all that bad to look at either. His face heated up, and he seriously hoped he wasn't blushing.

Eliza was still holding his arm, staring up at the pair, looking star-struck, "They almost look like their _glowing_… And their both _so good_…"

Mello swallowed thickly and nodded.

"Hey, girls, are you gonna compete, too?" a boy asked, slinging his arms over Eliza and Mello's shoulders, "The Miheal chick is pretty good… wouldn't want to see a couple of pretty girls heartbroken."

Eliza and Mello simultaneously turned and punched the boy in the face, shouting, "Shut up!" and "I'm a _man_, asshole!" respectively.

* * *

"Here you go!"

The waitress cheerfully set down four milkshakes in front of the group and tottered off to serve other customers.

Aurora sipped her strawberry-flavored shake and sighed in pure hedonistic pleasure.

Matt grumbled under his breath, "I didn't lose, so why did I have to buy the drinks?"

"Of course you didn't, sweetie." She replied condescendingly, "But you'll get the money back."

After Eliza and Mello had punched the kid, a fight had broken out, putting an end to Aurora and Matt's dance off. It was decided then that Eliza and Mello would buy them drinks… but it turned out that Matt was the only one with money left.

"Aurora, I never knew you could dance like that! It was really cool!" Eliza gushed, "I've seen Matt dance before -- he's never been beaten at DDR before, that I've seen!"

Aurora smiled, pleased with herself. Matt mumbled something unpleasant.

* * *

A/N: This is entirely out of the blue, but I just kinda like hearing people's opinions on stuff, because it inspires me... so far, what's your favorite pairing from this fic? (Or just favorite friends, I guess it would be at this point. haha) What two kids are you cheering on, and maybe why? 

Oh, but any review at all is much appreciated! Clicking that sexy little review button is what's bringing you new chappies!


	10. Chapter Eight

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Eight**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings:**bullying, cussing, and enough angst to drown in.**  
Summary:** It didn't make sense, though, because they shouldn't have cared about her.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Eight**

_The men had all gone, and the girl had been left in the mirrored room, alone with her own mind; it was torture. Were they planning on leaving her here, bloodied and bruised and _hurting_ so bad? For how long? For what reason? Did she do something wrong?_

"_Who did this to you, sweetie?" one of the men had asked, handing her a lollipop. It was green apple flavored. She accepted it, but only set it carefully on the floor in front of her._

"_Were you told not to say anything?" the man had persisted when she didn't reply. He picked up the lollipop and offered it to her again, "Its okay. You can go ahead and eat it. Don't you like green apple?"_

_She didn't respond. And the man finally left with a sigh, letting the candy treat lay on the floor for her. Had she made him mad? She didn't mean to… She unwrapped the candy and ate it in hopes that he would forgive her._

_And now she was alone. No one ever came to offer her another lollipop, even after the green apple one was long gone. She buried her face in her arms and whimpered. They were going to leave her here; she did something wrong, and they were going to leave her here. _

_It felt like forever when the door finally opened, but she'd already readied herself for isolation. Intrusion on that isolation only scared her, now._

_It was a man… a tall, lanky man, wearing a hooded sweater and a hat and sunglasses. He looked nothing like the men from before. But he must be with them. She couldn't make this man upset, or he'd leave her, too._

_A pale hand was extended toward her, and the man asked, "Would you like to come have some cake with me?"_

_She was scared… _terrified_. Her mind flitted through possibilities. What if he wasn't with the other men? If she went with him, would they be mad and come after her? But if he was with them, then they would be upset if she didn't go have cake with him…_

_Voice wavering, mind worn out, she asked softly, "…Are there strawberries on top?"_

_He smiled a bemused smile, and replied, "If you want strawberries on top, then that's what we'll get."_

_She hesitated further, "Who are you?"_

_The expression cleared, "I am L."_

_She'd heard that name. Father had hated him. Father had said that L was just some pompous bitch with nothing to do but stick his nose in other people's business. She told L this. He retracted his hand, and she panicked._

_Her hand shot out and grabbed his pant leg, "I'm sorry! Don't leave!" And she was crying, afraid; afraid that he'd get mad, afraid that he'd leave, afraid that she'd be left alone in the dark again._

"…_I won't leave." He finally said, and he patted her head._

_And she'd never met the man before in her life, and she had no idea what he might want from her, but she fell in love with those words and believed them without a doubt._

* * *

Aurora watched as Matt and Eliza played some card game together. She'd opted out, because she didn't know how to play many card games -- L hadn't really had the time to play them with her, and while Watari had taught her a few games, they were all little kid's games. But even though she'd done so of her own will, she still felt a little left out. Like a third wheel or something. Like she was watching a couple of newlyweds that she didn't know.

Eliza was so devoted to Matt; it looked so obvious. And Mello, too. She was a little envious. Matt was so kind to everyone, and he was so gentle. It wasn't surprising that he had admirers. Mello and Eliza were both free-spirited, too, and they stood up for what they believed in. Eliza was pretty, and lively; she would look good in a wedding dress, standing arm-in-arm with Matt, Aurora decided.

She wondered if they would invite her.

Aurora was too scrawny, and she was too quiet, and too passive, and too meek. She knew that she didn't at all deserve to be friends with any of them, but she was thankful that she was. Because she wasn't sure what she'd do otherwise.

"I'm going to the bathroom." She told the card-playing pair; it was a lie, but she had to do _something_.

"Okay." Eliza barely glanced up, so enthralled with the game. Matt nodded.

Aurora slipped out of Matt's room and wandered about the halls aimlessly, passing by classrooms and teacher's offices and a menagerie of other rooms until she found herself in the common's room. The huge picture windows looked out over the fields, empty now but usually occupied by the boys playing soccer. The common's room was usually empty this early in the morning, and she liked to come here sometimes to be alone. But someone was here, today; a tiny boy seated by one of the picture windows, working diligently on a puzzle. She'd seen him around before; he was almost always alone. Matt had called him 'Near,' and said that he was Number One around here. Mello was jealous of him.

Before she'd even processed the thought, she was moving forward in silence, nearing the boy. Before she'd thought through it, she crouched beside him and asked, "Are you lonely?"

The boy looked up, dark, emotionless eyes studying her before he replied simply, "No."

"Why?" she stared back.

Near didn't respond to her question right away. His eyes looked so much like L's. It made her heart ache.

"_Are you lonely, L-san?"_

"_No."_

"_Why?"_

"…_Why do you ask?"_

"_Because I am."_

"Why do you want to know?" the pale boy finally asked her.

She smiled a little bit, looking away, "Because I am."

Near's eyebrows furrowed a little bit, in thought, but he didn't say anything. He seemed to have abandoned his puzzle for the moment.

They remained silent for a time, Near eventually asked, "Why?"

She couldn't answer that. She didn't know how. Instead, she responded with, "Can I play with you for a little while, Near?"

He silently slid the milky white puzzle within her reach, and she studied it for a few second before adding a piece to the area he was working on.

* * *

There was a chorus of snickering, and a girl picked at Aurora's t-shirt, "Look at this! What do you spend all your allowance on? Games and sodas?"

Another giggled, grabbing a fistful of hair, "Obviously not decent clothes or a haircut!"

There were more comments, and Aurora just stared down at the girls' bathroom floor in silence. Something metallic caught her eye, and she turned her head, but not quick enough. Several inches of hair fell to the floor, and the girls around her began to laugh harder. Aurora bit her lip.

"Look, there are more split ends!" a girl squealed excitedly. _Snip!_ and more dark auburn hair fell to the white tiles.

"Eeeww, Jen, there's hair on your skirt!"

"Oh, gross!" the girl with the scissors handed them off and brushed the strands from her skirt, "You stupid little bitch, look what you did!"

"…I'm sorry." She replied quietly, and someone slapped her.

"Don't talk unless we tell you to, or else we'll tell Matt that you're sleeping with Near!"

Aurora looked up, panicked, "But I'm not--!"

She was slapped again, "What did I just say?! Are you stupid?!"

She trembled in silence. Matt would hate her, he would.

The girl that had slapped her grinned, "If you don't want us to say anything, then you should apologize."

"I--"

"On your knees. Kiss our feet and apologize."

Aurora knelt and did so, "I'm sorry."

"Say 'I'm sorry, my lady.'"

"I'm sorry, my lady."

The girls snickered. Someone kicked her.

"You might as well stay that way. You know it's the position you're in most the time anyway."

Aurora stayed on her knees.

"Say it. Say that you like it on your knees."

"I like it on my knees."

More laughter, "You like Matt, I bet. You're always following him around, like some kind of dog." A snicker, "I bet you wanna sleep with him, too, don't you?"

"…"

"Answer me!"

"I don't."

"Don't lie!" someone kicked her in the ribs, "You do too!"

"Yes, I do." Her side hurt, but she didn't show it. They would only aim for it if she did.

"You do what?"

"I want to sleep with Matt."

She was kicked in the stomach, and the girls laughed, "You stupid whore!"

Aurora lowered her head, sucking breath into her abused lungs.

There were voices in the hallway, and the girls exchanged glances before giggling again. Two of them grabbed her by the arms and pulled her up to her feet.

Another girl laughed, "You should dress like the person you really are!" and she sliced through Aurora's collar with the scissors. Her and another girl tore the shirt down the front, and then Aurora was shoved backward. She cried out when her head collided with the hard wall, and the girls only laughed, leaving her to slump on the floor.

Aurora just stared blankly ahead, silently grateful that they'd left, but also sad they hadn't stayed. These 'meetings' were the only thing that made sense anymore. Matt didn't make sense, Eliza didn't make sense, Mello didn't make sense; her own mind didn't even make sense anymore. But this did, because she knew how to deal with this. This wasn't anything new.

Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Aurora…?" Matt's voice was soft and hesitant, with an edge of worry. He was so kind and gentle; she really shouldn't worry him.

"Oh my… Aurora! Are you okay?!" Eliza knelt before her, pulling the tattered edges of the other girl's shirt together. That look of fear in her eyes didn't belong there; Eliza shouldn't be afraid.

"Here." Matt pulled off his shirt and handed it to Eliza, turning his back. It didn't make sense; Matt was always so shy about taking his shirt off.

Eliza was pulling the long-sleeved, striped shirt on over Aurora's head, and Aurora didn't put up any resistance. Both of them helped her to stand up, and Eliza draped the other girl's arms over Matt's and her own shoulders.

"Come on. Let's go to the nurse, now."

It didn't make sense, though, because they shouldn't have cared about her.


	11. Chapter Nine

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Nine**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings:**cussing, fighting, and insane amounts of sexual innuendo. You will never look at pocky the same way.**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Nine**

Matt and Eliza sat outside Roger's office, sitting side-by-side in silence. Inside, Roger and another teacher were talking to Aurora, probably trying to find out what had happened.

"Matt… I'm worried…" Eliza confided softly.

He swallowed and nodded, placing his hand atop hers on the floor between them almost hesitantly, "I think…" he bit his lip, "I think that Roger is going to want to talk to us next. We should tell him about the girls that told us where she was."

"Right." Eliza shyly turned her hand around and entwined their fingers, squeezing his hand before releasing it.

The door opened, and the two stood up expectantly as Roger stepped out. The other teacher led out Aurora with a guiding hand on her shoulder. Aurora didn't protest like she usually did, and that frightened Eliza.

"Aurora… Are you okay? Tell me what happened…" the black-haired girl said softly. Aurora didn't respond.

"Matt, Eliza… would you two please step in my office?" Roger asked, and he patted Eliza on the shoulder reassuringly as she passed.

The pair seated themselves on the couch in front of Roger's desk, and he leaned against the front of his desk, "I realize that you both are very worried about your friend. Physically, she's going to be okay. Other than that… I can't say for sure, but it seems as if she's just in shock, at the moment."

Matt and Eliza nodded mutely, and Matt was first to speak up, "A group of girls came out of the girls' bathroom and told us that Aurora was waiting for me inside. They looked like they were up to something."

Roger remained quiet, waiting for him to go on.

"We went inside, and she was on the floor with her shirt ripped open. I gave her mine, and we brought her to the nurse. All she's said to us is 'I'm sorry.'" The boy finished.

Roger nodded, "And these girls? Who were they?"

"Jennifer's troupe." Eliza answered readily enough.

Roger nodded again, "I see. Thank you." He pushed off the desk and moved to open the door for them. His hand on the doorknob, he turned and asked, "Could I ask one more favor of you two? Please try to keep an eye on Aurora."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Aurora was quiet within her room. Eliza cautiously knocked on the door.

"Aurora? It's me, Eliza. Can I come in?"

There was no verbal response, but the door opened within a few moments, revealing Aurora, head lowered a little and fingers entwined in her newly cut hair. The ends just reached her shoulders, and it looked strange on her. Eliza only smiled, reaching out to stroke the strands. She wasn't surprised when Aurora twitched away.

"You're hair looks cute this way, Aurora!" The black-haired girl beamed, dropping her hand away.

Aurora ducked her head a little more and turned to pace back into the room, mumbling, "I don't like it."

Eliza sighed a little, stepping inside to sit on the other girl's bed. Aurora sat at her desk, fingers still absently playing with her hair.

After a long moment of silence, Eliza finally asked, "Hey, Aurora, you doing okay?"

A slight nod, but no other response.

"I got some pocky. Matt said he thought you liked strawberry flavored." Eliza held out the pink box that she'd carried in with a teasing smile, "But it's my favorite, too, so save some for me."

Aurora nodded a little and shyly extracted one of the slender sticks, bringing it to her lips to lick delicately at the flavor.

Eliza laughed, "You're like a little kitty!" she got her own share of pocky and waved it in the air like a magician's wand, "You gotta take it all in! You can't just lick at it, or you won't get anywhere!"

"…I like to lick it, though… It tastes better…" Aurora's voice was soft. Eliza grinned, glad she'd gotten her talking.

"But… But it's just meant to be eaten quickly! If you take your time licking like that, it'll take hours, and you'll never get anywhere!" Eliza bit off the end of her pocky before continuing, "How many are you going to get through just licking?"

Aurora took the pocky from her lips, staring at the tip where she'd licked the flavoring off, and replied thoughtfully, "But I like it this way… Because they're just so good. How can you not savor the taste?"

"But… But…"

There was a dull thud outside the door, and both girls jumped in surprise. Matt peeked in, hand covering his nose and looking at them a little wide-eyed, "Wh-What are you talking about?"

Aurora perked up, "Matt! What do you like better? Licking, or eating it all at once?"

Matt fell over onto the floor, and Eliza just cracked up, laughing insanely.

Awhile later, Aurora sat at her desk, red-tinted cheeks buried in her arms as she stared at the blank wall. Matt and Eliza were snickering a little, seated together on the bed.

Eliza managed to stop giggling and reached for the box of pocky again. Holding one out to Matt, she grinned when he reached for it… and then pulled it away. He blinked in confusion.

"Answer her question, _Mattie-boy._" She sang, "Do you like licking--" she languidly licked the pocky, "--or biting?" and then she chomped down on the end.

Matt's eyes widened again, and his jaw dropped, "I… uh… I…"

Eliza stuck the pocky in his open mouth and snickered, patting him on the head, "Don't hurt yourself, I was just joking."

He pouted a little, gnawing quietly on the treat.

* * *

Matt shoved his hands in his pockets and turned his eyes up to the night sky in thought. He'd heard Eliza telling Aurora something about how before she'd come to Whammy's House, she'd hung out with some kid in her neighborhood. The two of them, Eliza had said, would sneak out at night to look at the stars, and the kid would tell Eliza what all the constellations were. Aurora had been enthralled in the descriptions, and the girls had decided to sneak out that night to look at the stars together.

But they hadn't known that Matt was listening, and Matt hadn't cared to tell them. In the end, he'd ended up coming out to look at the stars, too, standing in the shadow of a tree. He could faintly hear Eliza talking, and if he squinted, he could see them laying in the grass. He glanced to them, then back at the sky. It really was kinda pretty.

A hand landed on his shoulder, and he jumped, startled, whirling around to see Mello. The blonde blinked at him and asked quietly, "What are you doing?"

Matt kept his voice down, because he didn't want the two girls to hear them and think he was stalking them, "Looking at the stars. What are _you_ doing?"

Mello's eyes were transfixed on him, and he replied faintly, "…Looking at the stars…"

Matt felt his face flush a little, and he grabbed the other boy's hand, pulling him further away from where the girls were. He realized, somewhat absently, that things had never really been dealt with concerning Mello. As soon as they were out of earshot, Matt dropped Mello's hand, turned, and blurted, "Why did you kiss me?" He then proceeded to realize what he'd said, and he blushed a little, "Um… I mean…"

Mello paused, looking faintly uncomfortable, "Because… I wanted to."

Matt fell silent, chewing his lip.

Shifting his weight, Mello averted his gaze to the sky, "And… I kind of want to do it again, too. Cause… I think you're really, um, cute and…" the blonde swallowed thickly, shifting his weight again.

Matt couldn't think of anything to say to that, so instead he told him, "…I like Aurora."

Mello's head snapped down to look at the younger boy, "What?"

"I said… that I like Aurora. A lot."

The older boy grabbed Matt by the collar, dark eyes on the verge of overflowing with sudden tears, and Matt felt his heart beat so fast, he thought it might burst out of his ribcage. Mello's hand was shaking, and he moved his lips to say something, but no noise came out, and Matt was actually _afraid._

"I--I'm sorry, Mello!"

"Mello…" the soft, even voice gave both boys pause, and they turned to look as Aurora walked toward them. She paused just outside their reach, fingers twirling her hair and head tilted a little, "Mello, if you love Matt, then beating him up doesn't do you any good." She shifted a little, lowering her chin, "You're mad at me, so you should be beating me up, right?" her eyes flickered to Matt, and the boy realized that she'd heard his confession. His face reddened.

Mello slowly released Matt, but didn't say anything, just staring furiously at the girl.

Aurora's pale blue eyes slid back to Mello, "I can't say that I know what you're feeling. But… Matt's a really good friend of mine. Even if you're mad at him for some reason, can you stop hurting him?"

Mello must've gotten a second wind, because he whirled on the girl, "What difference should it make to you, anyway?! You're always so cold to everyone! _You're _the one that's hurting him, because _you're_ the one he likes!"

She had nothing to say to this.

Mello turned back to Matt, looking almost desperate, "Right, Matt? You said you like her, but she says you're just a good friend! We were really close, and I _love_ you, so why can't you like me instead?!"

"I… I just… I can't…" Matt took a step away, glancing from Mello to Aurora, and back to Mello.

And then Aurora did something that neither boy ever thought she'd do. She strode forward, stopped just in front of Mello, and slapped him, square across the face.

Mello froze, stunned, hand coming up to touch his reddened cheek.

Aurora tucked her hands in her pockets and struck a pose that looked surprisingly similar to L's, speaking slowly, voice even, "Stop being such a selfish brat, Mello."

It only took a few seconds for Mello to process what had happened, and once he had, he launched at the girl, punching and kicking and pulling hair, and she turned around every attack and returned it with equal fervor, until their shouting had woken several kids, and bedroom windows had slid open and kids were cheering on the fight.

Of course, with all the ruckus, they were bound to attract the attention of the teachers, and soon enough there were teachers pulling the two teens apart, and still, all Matt could do was stare at them.


	12. Chapter Ten

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Ten**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **sexual innuendo, and... maybe some stuff that resembles angst?**  
Summary: **"You… Don't hate me, okay?"

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Ten**

"Aurora? I'm coming in." Matt knocked at the girl's door later that night when everyone was supposed to be sleeping. He paused before cautiously pushing open the door, "Aurora?"

She was laying on her side, back to him with her head propped up on her fist, eyes focused on her laptop screen. He could see the headphone wire snaking up from the laptop to her ear. Outwardly, she appeared oblivious to his presence.

He eyed her back, trying to decide if she was in a bad mood or not. But he couldn't really decide. She was always so good at hiding emotion.

Taking a deep breath, he started, "Hey, can I ask you something?"

Aurora was quiet; for a moment, he wondered if she'd even heard him.

"Yeah, what is it?"

Matt winced a little. Maybe this had been a bad idea… but he'd come this far. Swallowing thickly, he forged on, "Aurora, I… I don't know if you heard me before, but I wanna tell you…"

Her arm stilled on the computer mouse, but she didn't otherwise respond. He took that as a good sign.

"I…" He took a breath, mind trying to recall that stupid shojo manga he'd read once out of boredom. How had that guy put it? Damnit, he couldn't remember! Whatever. "I love you, Aurora."

Having finally got out his confession, he turned his attention on her, waiting for… well, he wasn't sure what he was waiting for. He could faintly recall that the girl in the manga had swooned into her love's arms… but Aurora was lying down. In fact, she wasn't even looking at him… or talking. He studied her back, frowning a little when he saw the muscles there tense.

"Yeah. I heard you before." She replied vaguely.

Matt wasn't sure what he had expected, but that hadn't been it. Feeling just a little bit of desperation surfacing, he moved closer to the bedside, fingers itching to reach out and… he was at a loss for what he wanted to do. But he wanted to see her face, he knew that. He knew that he didn't like her distance.

"Aurora?" he reached out and touched her shoulder, "Hey, could you… turn around or something?" he laughed a little, but it sounded weak, "I don't really wanna look at the back of your head."

She sighed a little bit, and he watched her twist around, peering at him from the corner of her eye, "'I love you, too.' Is that what you want me to say?"

He opened his mouth, then closed it again, looking a little bit taken aback, "I… uh… yeah. I mean, kinda… I-If it's true and…"

It looked like she might want to turn around again, but she didn't. She only glanced away, "Well… it's not." She chewed on her lip a moment.

Matt felt that she'd stabbed him, and he must've looked it, too, because she sat up and faced him quickly, leaning forward and calling almost desperately, "You… Don't hate me, okay?"

"I…" he stepped backward.

She bowed her head and straightened, gripping the edge of her bed, "Sorry, I… I'm not very good at this stuff, I…"

Matt looked away uncertainly.

"Hey, Aurora, have you seen… Matt?" Eliza poked her head in the door, pausing when she saw the boy, "Oh, uh… Am I interrupting?"

Matt turned and paced toward the door, pausing on the threshold to say, "No. Did you want something?"

"Uh, no, I just… I was just wondering why you weren't in your room is all." Eliza glanced uncertainly to Aurora, and was surprised when the boy brushed past her and shut himself in his room.

Blinking at his shut door, she asked, "What's going on?"

Aurora cracked up, making Eliza jerk her head around to stare incredulously. The laughter quickly died down to something that sounded vaguely like a sob.

"…Aurora?"

"I… I don't know what I'm gonna do…"

* * *

"Matt, Matt, come on, come play with us!"

The boys begged Matt anxiously. One of the smaller boys grabbed his sleeve and tugged persistently.

Matt chuckled a little, "Yeah, okay. I'm coming, just let me put this away." He waved his GameBoy and pushed through the group.

When Matt strolled out on the field, he laughed and joked with the small group that escorted him. He even waved at Mello.

Aurora, at the other side of the field, looked down, nervously toying with her hair, "I… uh… I'm not sure I wanna play anymore…"

The boys nearest her protested immediately, and she eventually gave in, but she stayed shyly out of Matt's direct line of sight. When they picked teams, she was sure he'd noticed her, but neither said anything. They ended up on opposite teams.

When it became apparent that Matt wasn't outwardly annoyed by her presence, she relaxed into the game and, moving swiftly, she darted in and stole the soccer ball from Mello, only laughing when his foot collided with her ankle instead of the ball.

Yelling over her shoulder to Mello as she dribbled the ball to the opposing team's goal, she called, "You've got some awful aim, there, blondie!"

Several things happened at once. Aurora registered the sudden smirk on Mello's face, and looked ahead just in time to see a player from his team dart in and try to steal the ball from her in much the same fashion as she had moments earlier. In a panic, she barely managed to bolt to one side with the ball still under her control, but she ended up tripping on a dirt clod and tumbled to the ground with a shout, bringing her arms up automatically.

She never hit dirt. In fact, she found herself laying on something warm and bony, and a little musky smelling, with a face full of black and white cloth. The thing under her groaned, and she shrieked in surprise, scrambling off. Or… she would have if an arm hadn't slung itself over her lower back, pinning her where she was. She froze, face bright red.

"Augh… damnit…" the voice rumbled in the person's chest, and she recognized it right away.

"M-Matt! Let me go! I--" her protests died with a faint squeak when another arm flung itself around her waist. Terrified that he was about to do something rather painful to her, she slowly turned to look up at him.

He grinned down at her, cheeks tinted pink, "Hey."

"I-I'm sorry!" she squeaked. Matt simply _did not_ grin like that unless he was planning something awful.

"I'm not." The grin became almost smug.

"L-Let me up…"

"No."

Some of the younger boys that had yet to develop an interest in such situations began to gag noiselessly. Mello scowled horribly and looked away, crossing his arms.

"W-Why?" the girl started to look nervous and, upon realizing that they were _right in the middle of the soccer field_, started to put up a fiercer struggle, "Matt, whatever you think you're doing, do it later! _Everyone_ is watching, Matt!"

He considered it and seemed to consider the error of his ways, and shrugged. Aurora started to relax, thinking he was going to release her, only for him to push her onto her back and get up, dragging her with him.

"W-What?! Matt, are you _stupid_?! Don't just…just… _drag a girl off_! It _looks_ weird!" she protested loudly, "And, hey, we were playing soccer! What about the game?!"

"You don't give a damn about the game _or_ what anyone will say about us, Aurora, so shut up." He told her this with that grin of his that was quickly becoming annoying.

"I'm_ older_ than you, so _you_ shut up! And where are you dragging me off too? Matt, you're acting weird! Did you eat something off the floor, you dog?"

He only laughed at her, "You tell me to shut up, then ask a question? What sense does that make?"

"You didn't listen to me anyway, so just answer the damn question!" she looked around them. He'd dragged her further away from the building, rather than inside like she thought he'd do, and when she looked ahead-- "Oh _hell_ no! Matt you _pervert_! You-- You-- _sexual deviant_! I'm not going to the woods, _alone_, with you!"

He rose an eyebrow at her, looking amused, "Why? You've done it before."

"Because you're --" she yelped when he suddenly pushed her backwards against a tree trunk and trapped her there, his arms braced against the tree on either side of her. She flattened against the bark, staring at him, now officially creeped out, "I'm serious, Matt, you're acting weird. Maybe you hit your head when I knocked you over or something. Weren't you, like, all shy and cute and stuff before?"

"'Cute,' huh?" he chuckled, bowing his head a little, and when he looked back up, the blush had returned, "Yeah, cause… I've never really liked a girl before. And after you turned me down, it hurt pretty bad--"

"Do you have a fever?" she pressed a hand to his forehead.

He sighed in exasperation, "I'm _fine,_ Aurora."

She mocked his tone, making a face at him, "I don't _believe you_, Matt." His expression cleared, and it made her pause, "Um… what now?"

"…Can I… uh… kiss you again?"

Her head jerked up so fast she bashed it into the three, "WHAT?!"

His blush darkened, his bravado seeming to have worn off, "I, uh… the truth is, I kinda set this all up. Cause I wanted to ask you something."

"…What?" she winced a little bit, hand going to where she'd bashed her skull into the tree. Matt's hand beat her to it, and he carefully sifted through her hair.

"I'm sorry. It's not bleeding, though…" he said softly, turning her head so he could inspect the lump. With her face turned away, he recovered some of his audacity and asked, "Have you ever dated before? Or even had a crush?"

"Um… no…" she shifted uncomfortably, "I've never really had an opportunity to…"

"Huh?"

Shifting again, she kept her face turned away, even though he was done looking at the back of her head, "I've hardly ever spoken with someone my own age before I came here…"

Confounded by this confession, he pressed, "What? No friends at all? What about school? Or kids where you grew up?"

She resolutely blanked her expression and said flatly, "I was home-schooled. I didn't leave the house." She looked down, then glanced up at him, expression softening a little, "…I had a little brother for awhile. He was a little like you. Uh…" she looked away quickly, and her expression blanked out again, "Why?"

"Huh? I, uh… I was talking to Eliza and, uh… she said that…" his voice faded off when she kept staring off to the side, "…I'm sorry. I said something wrong, didn't I?"

"…It's not your fault." She pushed at one of his shoulders until he backed off, and then slid down the trunk of the tree, crossing her arms on top of her knees and bowing her head. Matt knelt in front of her, looking concerned.

"…Aurora? You've never said anything about your family…"

"I never had one." She replied bitterly.

He swallowed, "Then… where did you stay? Before you came here? What happened to the people who raised you?"

"…I lived with L-san for five years." She said softly, then fell silent.

"L…_the_ L?!"

A slight nod, "Don't go spreadin' it around… I guess I'm not supposed to tell people that."

"Uh… yeah. Won't say a word." He nodded, then went on, "So, before him…"

She didn't respond. Matt sat down, tilting his head a little as he waited for her to answer. She still said nothing.

Finally, he sighed, leaning back to stare at the treetops, "…If I tell you about my parents, will you tell me?"

"Why does it matter? It's in the past…"

"Cause if bad stuff happens to you, it changes you. I don't get why you try so hard to escape my irresistible charm--" and here she rose a speculative eyebrow at him. He ignored her, "--and so maybe it's cause something happened to you."

She frowned, "…Well, maybe I'll tell you something if you tell me about your parents."

"Why does it matter? It's in the past…" he mocked.

She glared, "Because you offered and… and I'm a little curious, I guess."

"…Fine. But no crying."

She nodded a little, and he glanced to her, noticing somewhat vaguely that she was chewing on her thumbnail. Looking back to the sky, he considered where he should start.


	13. Chapter Eleven

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Eleven**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **mentions of suicide, murder, and child abuse**  
Summary:** Pasts are revealed.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Eleven**

Matt stared up at the sky, considering where to start. "Well, I hardly remember my dad. He died when I was really young. About all I remember was that he was a really big guy, and he kept mom happy. After he died, mom had a rough time keeping everything together, and eventually she started drinking and bringing home all kinds of guys." He paused there, frowning. "Eventually she just gave up, and she killed herself. That's when I came here."

When he glanced to the girl, she'd buried half her face in her arms, and her pale blue eyes stared up at him from beneath her bangs. She glanced off to the side and mumbled a 'sorry' when she realized he was watching her.

Matt blew up his bangs and leaned forward, ruffling her hair, "It ain't your fault. And that happened a long time ago, so it doesn't bother me as much anymore." Resting his forearms on his knees, he pressed, "Okay, you're turn."

She covered her face. Matt frowned, wondering briefly if he should be pushing her. But before he could say anything, she began.

"My parents were killed in a staged car crash. That what I was always told, anyway. I don't remember them at all. The first thing I can remember is sitting in a dark basement with Rochel, and there isn't much else to remember. Until Rochel turned three, there was a woman that took care of us, and she taught me some stuff, but then she left. We mostly just read books."

_"Sis…" Rochel tugged on Aurora's arm, his voice low, "Hey, sis?"_

_"What is it?" she woke quickly, eyes automatically searching the familiar darkness before turning to him._

_All they had was one small bed, and Aurora was almost relieved that eight-year-old Rochel was still small and lanky. She had no idea what they'd do when he got older and physically larger. She shivered a little, eying the scrap of a blanket that her brother held._

_Wide, dark brown eyes stared up at her, "Sis, I can't sleep…"_

_She sighed a little, relieved that it was just a little insomnia. Brushing her fingers through his scruffy black-auburn hair, she smiled, "Do you want me to read you something?"_

_He nodded shyly, and she withdrew from the bed, her bare feet slapping the concrete floor as she crossed the room. They'd found a box once among the clutter of the basement, filled with books of all types. She'd been given some sparse lessons by an older girl once, when she was young, and she knew most the words in the books. The words she didn't know, she made up. The ones she did know, she taught to Rochel. _

_"I wanna hear the Hocklburry one!" Rochel called after her._

_"Huckleberry Finn?" she loved that one. Digging it out of the box, she returned quickly, the chill of the floor starting to seep into her feet. Settling down on the bed beside her brother, she allowed him to crawl into her lap and curl against her chest, and she spread the blanket-scrap across his shoulders, and they began to read softly, "You don't know about me without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer; but that ain't no matter. That book was made by Mr. Mark Twain, and he told the truth, mainly…"_

Matt frowned a little, leaning toward Aurora. The girl had paused.

" Aurora?" he asked softly, "…What is it?"

She sniffled a little, rubbing her nose against her arm, "The guy that owned the place -- I heard him called 'Belial' once… he came home and we heard him upstairs."

_Pounding footsteps shook dust and insulation loose from the ceiling, and Aurora automatically silenced herself, sitting stock still and trying to follow the steps. Rochel clung to her, frightened._

_Something slammed into a wall, and they heard muted noises, stumbling steps, and someone landed on the bed. More muted noises followed._

_"…He's drunk." Aurora said softly. Her hands came up and covered his ears as a female voice moaned loudly. He gripped her fingers and whispered her name._

_Nearly an hour later, with Aurora still protectively curled around Rochel, feet hit the floor and shouting started. More stomping, a door slammed shut, then open again, and a drawer slammed open. A woman screamed, and Aurora gripped Rochel's ears tighter as a gun went off. Then silence. Aurora only shivered._

_When the staggering footsteps started again, Aurora released Rochel and pushed at his shoulders, whispering, "Go!"_

_He tumbled out of the bed, clinging to the blanket and book as he headed for the broken cupboards against the far wall. Aurora watched him tuck himself inside one, and his wide brown eyes peered at her in fear.She motioned at him and the cupboard door shut quickly._

_The door to the basement rattled, and she laid down as she spied boot clomping down the stairs._

Aurora turned her face away from him, looking bitter, "He beat me to a pulp, so bad I couldn't even move.And then Rochel started crying, and he must've heard him because… because…" she swallowed, "A neighbor or something heard the woman scream, and they called the cops. But by the time the police got there, the bastard was already gone. The cops took Rochel away, and they stuck me in a room and asked me a bunch of questions.L came, and he asked me questions, too, and then I was staying with him."

Matt bit his lip, a tiny whimper escaping despite his best efforts. She twitched, eyes darting to him.

"M-Matt!" she cried, bolting up and hovering over him, not sure what to do, "I-I'm sorry! Please don't cry!" Hesitant, she wrapped her arms about his shoulders and bent her head against his neck, like she'd done with Rochel.

The boy stiffened in surprise, blinking away the wetness in his eyes, "A-Aurora…?"

He turned to look down at her, but a hand caught his chin and he was forced to look away with a faint, "Don't look at me right now, okay?"

"Uh… Okay…" the hand released him and fell to grip the front of his shirt. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and relaxed, managing to wrap an arm around her waist.

Eliza opened her bedroom door and looked out when she heard footsteps in the hall, "Oh, Matt, Aurora, you're back!" 

Aurora didn't respond, and Eliza took in the scene before her. The red-haired girl had her head bowed, an arm over Matt's shoulders, and Matt's arm was curled around her waist. She looked like she'd run a marathon.

Matt glanced to Aurora and said something softly. The girl nodded and moved ahead of him to her own room as Matt stopped to talk to Eliza.

The black-haired girl glanced after her, "Um… where have the two of you been? You made up, I assume?"

"Yeah, I guess I moved too fast or something. We're okay now."

She glanced at Aurora's door again, "…She looked pretty tired, Matt. You too, actually."

"We were, ah… playing." He lied, deciding it was best to cover up their talk.

Eliza continued to stare at Aurora's door for a moment until eventually she came to some sort of conclusion. Her eyes widened a bit, "Where did you say you two were?"

"The woods out back, why?"

"Matt! You didn't… you…!" her face reddened and she reared back in surprise and hurt.

He straightened, confusion, "What? Huh? I--oh… _oh_!" he blushed bright red, waving his hands almost wildly, "No way! We just talked!"

A/N: O-Kay! At the insistence of a particularly faithful reviewer, I've battled with my computer to bring you this major-league update! But... after this I'll be going on a brief hiatus until my computer is fixed. 


	14. Chapter Twelve

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Twelve**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings:**the usual sexual innuendo**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Twelve**

Sometimes, Matt thought, it was amazing how naïve Aurora could be.

Oh, she knew about all the standard things that adolescents whispered about, the things that braver kids would have a fumbling attempt at and more timid, shy kids could only blush at. 

What she didn't know, though, was how nicely her baggy boy-jeans clung to her hips and butt, or how amazing she sounded when she had her headphones on and she didn't realize she was singing. She didn't know why Matt's hands had a seemingly magnetic attraction to her hair, or why Matt had blushed so hard when she had plopped herself in his lap one afternoon because he stole her spot on the couch.

He imagined that she had an idea, somewhere in the back of her mind. He would have liked to believe that she knew exactly what she was doing, or that her brain was sending some subconscious signal that made her do those things. But the thing was, he had no idea. She seemed almost clueless if he commented on it, and so he'd decided not to question, just watch. And smoothly fend off any advances that the other boys might have thought about making.

Matt was silently admiring one of those oblivious moments, watching her sit in a far-from-ladylike pose under a tree with books and notebooks spread around her and her laptop setting open at her feet, playing music as always. Even from this distance, he could see her lips moving as she unconsciously lip-synced with the song. And then she leaned forward over her book, brushing errant bangs back behind her ear. Several of the strands slipped free again almost instantly. He couldn't help but smile when she resolutely tucked it back into place.

"What's so funny, young man?" the threatening voice brought him back to the steps he was setting on and the irate teacher that was lecturing him.

"Nothing, ma'am." He cleared his expression to what he hoped looked serious.

The woman eyed him skeptically before continuing with the lecture. It didn't take long for his attention to drift back to the girl, watching as she stretched and yawned before moving on to a different book.

When Matt was finally dismissed by the teacher, he gathered his things and headed straight for Aurora, "Hey. Studying?"

"Yeah." She automatically rearranged her things to make room for him. Glancing up at him, she teased, "What grave sin did you commit this time? Fall asleep in class?"

"No, much worse." He settled in the grass beside her, grinning, "I had fun."

"In a computer class? Gods, man, are you insane?" she dramaticized, "What's your punishment? Fifty lashes of the whip? Drawn and quartered? Hanging?"

"Again, you underestimate the severity of the situation!" his eyes widened and he looked horrified, "I got lectured!"

"Oh, you poor soul!" she crooned, leaning in to hug him out of pity. He blushed, but she moved on, looking thoughtful, "But it only makes sense. I don't think fun is a felony punishable by death. And you'd like the whips too much for it to be a punishment."

He didn't comment on that, reaching for her laptop, "Hey, d'ya got games on this thing?"

"No way, are you insane? Why would I have games on my computer?" she gasped in fake astonishment.

"Right, right, of course. So can I play with your CD dock?"

"Matt, that sounded dirty." She commented flatly, then gave him a wicked grin, "And of course you can. Just don't break it or get into anything else."

This was one of those instances where he doubted her naïveté. Blushing, he again declined to comment and instead studied the computer desktop.

He'd seen her playing some games that looked interesting, and others that looked not-so-interesting. (How was it she could develop an infatuation with some spiky-haired samurai that had almost _no_ sense of fashion when she could have a hot stud like Matt? That samurai twit wasn't even _real_!)

His eyes were drawn to an innocuous little folder titled 'My Pictures,' and he developed this urge to find out what might be stored in that folder. Glancing to the girl, he ascertained that she was working on her homework again before turning the screen ever so slightly away. Cautiously, he hovered the mouse over the folder.

"I_said_ stay out of my files." She warned ominously. 

Matt jumped in surprise, yelping reflexively, "I wasn't _in_ your files!"

She glanced up, "You were about to be."

"Was not."

"Stop being a child."

"Give me four years."

She rose an eyebrow at him. He stuck his tongue out.

Eliza snickered from her location behind Matt, "Matt, is she your mom or your girlfriend? You gotta pick one or the other." She leaned down to his level and grinned, "And please say 'mom' so we can finally get married!"

"Oh, Eliza, I'm flattered, but I jut don't think we're suited for each other!" Aurora giggled, batting her eyelashes.

"I_meant_ Matt." Eliza rolled her eyes.

"Oh, well, sor_ry_. Try using a few more pronouns in your sentences." Aurora mimicked her, then grinned coyly, looping her arms around the boy in question, "But_this_ is _all mine_."

Matt turned red, but was ignored as Eliza pouted, "You were singing a different song when '_this'_ was practically on his knees for you."

"Well, anyone would, but I don't remember him on his knees." She snickered, "Are you sure that wasn't a dream?"

Eliza turned red, "_You know what I meant_!"

"Hmm… do I?" the red-haired girl feigned innocence, arms still around Matt.

"And quit hanging all over him!" The dark-haired girl protested, "I thought you weren't dating!"

"Um… Hello!" Matt waved one hand in the air and -- somewhat regretfully -- pushed Aurora away with the other, "What am I, a piece of meat?"

Eliza opened her mouth to say something, but Aurora beat her, lightly kissing the boy's cheek before releasing him, "_Steak,_my dear. Thick, juicy _steak_."

Despite his embarrassment at the comment, he managed to respond flatly, "Aurora, that sounded dirty."

"Hey, Matt…" Eliza extended one long finger and jabbed the red-haired boy in the shoulder, placing the digit against her lower lip when he looked up.

"Can I study with you?" she asked hopefully.

"Yeah, go ahead." He broke into a grin and cleared a spot at the library table for her.

Settling down in a chair and neatly piling her books to the side, she asked, "Aurora's not studying with you today?"

Matt raised an eyebrow at that, "Should she be?"

"Well, no, but you two spend so much time together, I figured you always studied together, too."

"We do, sometimes." He shrugged, "Why? She's probably in her room or the commons if you want her."

Eliza just shook her head and opened her notebook, "Did you understand what Mr. Sloane was talking about today?"

The boy winced, "I feel asleep. Did you get any notes?"

"Some." She pushed her notebook at him, sighing, "Remind me again how it is you're number three around here?"

"My good looks, irresistible personality, and suavity?" he grinned playfully.

"Is 'suavity' even a word?" and she paused, sighed again, and shook her head mournfully, "You're going to drown in a lake someday."

Bent over his own notebook, he replied, "Then I'd best stay away from water."

"At least try to take a bath once in awhile. Are you done with my notes yet?"

"Almost."

Once the two had settled into doing their homework, Eliza snuck a glance at the boy beside her. She'd been at Whammy's House for only three years, and she hadn't even known Matt for her first year of residence there, but she really did love him. He wasn't her first love -- there had been a particularly charming young man in her school before she'd come here -- but she'd never had a chance to act on her feelings… and now the one on the receiving end of her affection was so deeply in love with someone else. 

There had been a time when she could delude herself with 'Maybe he's just shy' -- because he really did get shy when _any_ girl hit on him -- but since Aurora's appearance, he'd slowly become more and more bold until he'd professed his love for her, and effectively shot down Eliza, all in one. 

But Eliza refused to give up! No way, no how! Aurora didn't return his feelings -- not obviously, anyway -- so maybe he'd give up on her soon! And then, he would come to Eliza, and she would patch up his broken heart and take it for her own.

"Yes!" she cried excitedly.

Matt jumped, almost jumping out of his chair, "Y-Yes, what?"

"Um… sorry…" Eliza buried herself in her work again to hide her blush.

When Aurora entered the library awhile later, she all but _flounced_ up to their table and dropped her books on the table across from them, ruffling Matt's hair before seating herself without invitation. 

"Hi, Eliza, what's up?" the pale-eyed girl grinned crookedly, and Eliza briefly thought that Aurora would make a cute guy.

"Um… not much. You didn't happen to get Mr. Sloane's lecture, did you?"

"What, you guys didn't?" she looked surprised, and giggled at their expressions, "Okay, I'll explain it, then." She snapped a hair tie off her wrist and whipped her hair into a little ponytail before popping open the science book and dropping it on the table before them, "Okay, so what didn't you get?" Eliza pointed out a section, and Aurora quieted, staring at where she pointed before asking, "Really? You don't get that?"

"No…" and now Eliza looked a little embarrassed.

"Ah, sorry. All right, it's like this…" Aurora pointed at the small chart-like diagram in the book, "This here is called a Punnett Square. Which is a pretty stupid name, but yeah, scientists aren't all that great at naming stuff." She laughed to herself and took Matt's notebook and pencil, "The really simple ones only cross one gene. That means that there are only two gametes -- letters-- from each parent. To be easy, we'll do probability of getting a particular gendered child. You, the male--" she poked Matt in the chest, "have an X and Y chromosome. Eliza and I both have two X's. There can be genetic mutations that make this otherwise, but for the sake of secondary school education, we'll use the basic. Still following me?"

Both students nodded.

She sketched a Punnett Square, "All right. Now, obviously it takes a guy and a girl to make a kid. The girl's chromosomes, XX, get to top. The guy's, XY, go down the side. To cross them, you take the first chromosome from each side - both X's here - and put them side by side in the first square. In the box beside it, you put the girl's second chromosome and the boy's first chromosome…"

Nearly and hour later, after Aurora had successfully answered most of Eliza and Matt's questions regarding the chapter, she sat back with a sigh.

"You make this all look so easy…" Eliza murmured, glancing down at the notes she'd taken.

"Hm… I like genetics." Aurora shrugged and opened a book for another class. After a moment of staring at the text, she stuck her tongue out and pushed the book away in distaste, "Math, on the other hand, sucks."

"I second that motion." Eliza agreed whole-heartedly as the other girl started searching through the bag she carried with her.

"Cheers to that!" Aurora cheerfully produced a packet of pocky and, extracting a pink-coated biscuit stick, she presented it to Eliza as if it were a trophy, "Comrade, a pocky for your bravery."

Eliza laughed and took the pre-offered treat. Matt looked put out, "I don't get one?"

Aurora held out another stick of pocky just outside his reach, "And for you, my handsome gentleman, I'll be holding this hostage until you agree to pay for it."

He rose an eyebrow, "Pay for it? How?"

"Oh, nothing special. I'd just like to develop a close relationship with your brilliant mind. You don't mind, do you?" she smiled sweetly.

"…You want help with your math homework."

"Yes."

"Just give me the damn pocky."

"Do I get a shot at your head?"

"Yes." A pause, "And try talking like a normal person once in awhile."

"No." a pause, "And here you go."

Eliza laughed, and Matt just rolled his eyes, putting the pocky in his mouth and reaching for her math book. 


	15. Chapter Thirteen

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Thirteen**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings:  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Thirteen**

"And you want me to play for… what reason?"

Matt sighed, watching as Aurora, eyes downcast in quiet contemplation, as she absently played with the empty bottle before her crossed ankles.

"Because if Eliza and I have to play, then so do you."

Her light grip on the bottle slipped, and it rolled away across the carpeting. Raising her eyes to meet his, she tilted her head a little and glanced about the room's other occupants as a few more players settled into place. Eliza smiled encouragingly.

"Okay. Fine."

Once everyone had settled into something vaguely resembling a circle and the bottle had been placed in the middle, the game began.

Truth or Dare. She'd heard of it, but never had the chance to play. That was the only thing that had drawn her to participate… even though she'd become rather suspicious when Matt and Eliza had _insisted_ that she join them. And, she had to admit, she was a little curious as to why Matt was playing a game she'd heard was a girls' slumber party exclusive. (Eliza had laughed and said it was more fun with guys. Aurora had to make sure they weren't playing 'Spin the Bottle' or 'Five Minutes in Heaven.')

Aurora watched in silence as the bottle was spun, various kids were questioned, and those same kids were forced through either a short interrogation or a humiliating dare.

Aurora's opinion of high school-age kids deteriorated with each round.

Just about the time she had filed the game away under the category of _'avoid like the plague'_ the spinning bottle landed on Eliza.

"Truth or dare, Eliza?"

There was silence as Eliza considered her options, and finally, cautiously, replied with, "…Dare."

The darer, a small girl with golden pigtails, giggled and twittered with her friends for a moment before finally responding with her dare, "I dare you… to kiss Matt. On the lips."

Eliza and Matt's faces turned about six shades of red, eyes widening, and they started to protest.

"Ah, ah! You chose 'dare' so you gotta do it!" the pigtailed girl scolded, waving a finger at Eliza.

The pair turned to stare at each other, swallowing nervously. Matt bit his lip uncertainly, and Eliza pushed forward quickly and pressed her lips against his, hovering there for a moment. Some of the girls giggled excitedly, and Eliza jerked away as if she just realized they were there. Matt looked down at his lap, fingers splaying curiously over his lips.

The bottle was spun again, and more dares and truths were made, one of which forced the terminally body-shy Matt to strip off his shirt for the remainder of the game. 

It seemed like forever before the bottle pointed to Aurora, and she stared expectantly at the one who'd spun. It was one of those girls that picked on her… The one with the short brown hair. Aurora thought that her name might be Stacy. 

"Truth or Dare?" Stacy asked with a sneer.

Aurora twirled her fingers in her hair and tilted her head in thought. After a moment, she decided, and gazed back steadily as she replied, "Truth, I guess."

Stacy looked a little disappointed, but her friends giggled and whispered in her ear, and a grin slowly spread her lips.

"So, Aurora, what was it you and Matt were doing out in the woods a few nights ago? You know, that day he practically dragged you off the field. You were gone for _hours_…"

Some of the others started whispering to each other.

Aurora frowned a little, "We talked about stuff."

"You're not allowed to be vague!" a girl accused, and Aurora stared at her.

Glancing to Matt, she considered his softly curious expression. Surely he was wondering what she'd say. "It is a private matter."

There was a general ruckus, and someone shouted, "You have to answer truthfully!"

Aurora sighed and, closing her eyes, she pushed herself to her feet, "Then this is a sick game. I refuse to answer the question, and you are welcome to think what you please of me for it, but please refrain from getting Matt involved." She glanced down to Matt and Eliza, "Thank you for inviting me, but I'm going back to my room now." Turning, she swept from the room without a second glance.

Matt glanced after her retreating figure before getting up, "Yeah, I'm outta here too. It's none of your business what we talked about."

Eliza nodded her agreement and left with him.

When they caught up to Aurora, she glanced at them in confusion, a touch of worry tingeing her voice, "You guys left, too? You know they'll just talk about you."

"It's just talk. Let 'em." Matt shrugged impassively.

"It's a stupid game anyway." Eliza agreed, then looked to Matt, "Hey, can I get a kiss for real, some time?"

"What!" the boy yelped, face reddening again, "You're not serious!"

"Come on! No one's here but Aurora, and she doesn't care! Right, Aurora?"

The girl in question only shrugged a shoulder, grinning at them over her shoulder.

Mello was acting strange again. Not like the last time, where he got violent and angry. It was more like he had come to a conclusion about something, and whatever it was, it disturbed him. He was quieter, and more, well… _mellow_. Whatever it was, it somehow scared Matt. Because he'd never seen his friend like this. Because Mello wasn't supposed to be quiet and withdrawn into himself. He was supposed to be loud, and wild, and daring. 

And it only made it worse that he wouldn't talk about it. He'd just get a faraway look and dismiss it with a vague, 'It's nothing…'

Aurora was acting different, too, but it took Matt longer to notice. She was on her laptop more often, and he'd watch her check her e-mail and sigh quietly in disappointment, only to repeat it every few hours. She was distracted a lot, too. She would be doing her homework, and suddenly stop, pen hovering over paper, and staring blankly as if she were in deep thought. 

Matt was pretty sure that Eliza had picked up on the change in their mutual friend. She was much more active and cheery around her lately.

But no one would say what was going on.

"Hey, Aurora…?" he rapped his knuckles on the partially open door to the girl's bedroom, "I'm coming in. I wanna talk to you about something."

He paused, waiting to see if she would respond, but he didn't hear anything. Cautious, he pushed the door open, "Hey, did you fall asleep?"

His eyes fell on her laptop first, laying out on the floor with the screen partially folded down and the wireless mouse resting upside down against the far wall. The little red light on the bottom blinked furiously. He stared at it in confusion.

A small noise caught his attention, and he looked for the source, finding a suspiciously Aurora-shaped blanket cocoon on the floor at the foot of the bed. It shifted a little, and he stepped further into the room.

"Aurora? What are you doing? Is something wrong?"

Her voice was muffled, and he had to strain to hear her, "I'm fine. Go away."

That sent off alarms in his head. Aurora _never_ tells him to go away! "No. Tell me what's going on." He maneuvered closer to the girl, carefully crouching near her, "Hey, come on. Maybe I can help. Did Jen do something to you?"

"Matt…" she moaned, sounding as if she were in despair, "Just leave me alone… You can't do anything, so just go away."

He furrowed his brows and frowned, reaching out determinedly to pull the blanket away from her face, "I'm not going away. So you might as well tell me what's going on with you."

She put up a fight, refusing to release her grip on the blanket. The power struggle ended with Matt managing to entirely detangle her from the sheet, and he threw it onto the bed and out of her immediate reach. She curled in on herself, hiding her face. Panting and starting to sweat from the fight to get the sheet away, he stared down at her curled-up form.

"Tell me why you're crying." He demanded.

"Shut up! No, I'm not!" she sobbed.

"You are!" and now he was starting to get frustrated with her. Resolutely, he sat beside her and reached his arms around her curled figure. 

Every muscle in her body tensed, and she jerked her head up. Wide, almost hysteric eyes stared at him in panic, and she shoved him away, "Don't touch me! Leave me alone!"

He hit the floor, thrown off-balance by her sudden shove. But instead of getting up again, he lay there, a little bit dazed, and asked, "Why?"

She didn't reply.

Matt righted himself and stared at her, "Can't you at least say why you can't tell me what's wrong?"

She almost visibly cringed away from him, silent. Matt followed the curve of her back, watching it rise and fall erratically with her silent sobs, and finally he sighed.

"Fine. I'll leave."

Standing, he strode out of her room, not even pausing to glance back. When he got to his own room, he heard her door shut and lock.


	16. Chapter Fourteen

**Title:** Candy Kisses [Chapter Fourteen**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **cursing, character death, cutting**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Fourteen**

Matt hadn't really thought anything of Aurora's door being shut when he left his room the next morning. He began to wonder a little when she never came down for breakfast, but he reasoned it away. She'd been pretty upset. Maybe she just stayed up too late and was sleeping in. He certainly wasn't going to be the one to wake her up.

When she hadn't shown her face by lunchtime, Matt was seriously considering the gravity of the situation. And when Eliza asked him where Aurora had been all day, he didn't know what to say other than, "She locked herself in her room."

Eliza stared at him, "Why?"

"I don't know. She was really upset last night, but she wouldn't tell me anything. And then she threw me out and locked the door."

"And you just _left _her?" Eliza looked taken aback.

"What could I've done? She won't talk to me." Matt looked up at the ceiling, frowning, "All she says is 'get out' and 'leave me alone' and 'don't touch me.'"

"You didn't think to say anything _sooner_?" Eliza scoffed, "I'm going to go get Roger to unlock her door, and then I'll talk to her." And with that, the girl scurried off.

Matt stared after her in thought, then decided what he'd do. Heading for the kitchen, he managed to beg a bag of strawberries off one of the staff and he headed for the girl's room.

"Aurora?" he rapped on the wooden door with his knuckles. There was no response, but he somehow knew she was listening, "I know you're in there, Aurora. I brought strawberries, 'cause I figured you were hungry." A pause, and a hesitant, "I'm sorry… about last night…"

He wasn't sure if he expected her to respond or not, but she didn't, and that hurt something inside him. Grasping the doorknob, he tried it, probably turned it harder than absolutely necessary, and after a few minutes of pushing all his weight against the door and yanking on the door handle, he finally turned and slumped on the floor with his back against the door.

Letting his annoyance and frustration and _worry_ show plainly in his voice, he yelled back at her, "Fine! Then I'll eat the damn strawberries by myself!"

Viciously tearing into the bag, he sought out one of the red fruits and ate it in one bite, spitting out a leaf he'd bitten off, and then proceeded to devour the rest of the strawberries, finally balling up the plastic bag and hurling it against the far wall.

And yet, she hadn't made a noise. He waited a little bit -- pretty soon, the door would slam open, sending him sprawling out on his back, and she would chew him out for eating all of the strawberries that he'd brought for _her_. And Matt would smile and shrug and say 'I guess you weren't fast enough. Too bad.' 

Any minute now, she would come out demanding more strawberries.

………

Absolutely nothing happened. He shifted onto his knees and pressed his ear to the door. But he couldn't hear anything. Adrenaline pulsed through his veins, fueling his growing dread, and he stood, pounding insistently on the door again.

"Aurora… Come on, Aurora, it's me… It's Matt. Open the door… please, open the door… Damnit, Aurora, say something! Tell me what's wrong! Why won't you listen to me!" He didn't care that he was probably making a fool of himself. He didn't care that someone might take this the wrong way. He just needed her to open the door! He just had to see that she was _okay._ Memories ran through his head… thoughts of his mother locking herself in her room time and again. Thoughts of her emerging hours later with blood on her hands and bandages on her arms.

"_Mail, come to mommy." She called, arms open. And he would abandon his teddy bear in favor of hugging her, and she would pick him up and hold him as he cried out his relief. She'd just stroke his hair and coo, "Mommy, loves you, Mail… don't ever forget that, okay?"_

Briefly his mother's face flashed through his mind, a tiny smile on her lips and dead, dead eyes stared at him, and he watched her mouth the words 'I love you' as blood gurgled out of the gaping slash in her throat.

He was crying uncontrollably, now, still pounding his fists blindly against the door as he shouted, "Damnit, Aurora! Open the fucking door!"

And then someone was pulling him away, and Eliza attached herself to his arm and cried something at him as he struggled against whoever was holding him back. Teachers were at the door, unlocking it, and then pushing against it, and as soon as the door was open Matt broke away and darted inside.

_It's cold_, was the first ting he thought, but he didn't really care. The window was smashed, and Aurora was curled on the floor below it, staring at nothing with tears streaming down her face and mixing with blood from the small cuts on her face, and arms lying limply in her lap, covered with more cuts and blood. Matt collapsed on the floor and clung to her, not caring that he was cutting his legs or that she was getting blood on his clothes.

"Don't ever fucking do that again, you got that!" he half shouted, half sobbed at her, "What the hell is wrong with you!" 

Her fingers curled around his arm, and she leaned into him, crying softly, "He's dead, Matt… He's _dead_…"

And Matt didn't really care what or who she was talking about, because _Aurora is alive_.

When Aurora was brought back from the hospital, with Matt stayed stubbornly by her side for the entire day, until she was relocated to Eliza's room until her window was fixed. Mello convinced Matt to come back to his room instead, and Matt agreed somewhat hesitantly. The boy was asleep before his head hit the pillow, and Mello sighed a little, watching him.

He could clearly remember what Matt had told him, about his mother killing herself, about the cutting; Mello knew that it hadn't left Matt without his emotional scars. And he wanted to strangle Aurora for making Matt go through any of that again, and strangle Matt's mother for messing up the kid's head in the first place. His fingers unconsciously curled around a fold in the blanket. 

And then he got to wondering what had upset the girl so much. She didn't seem like the suicidal type to him; she'd actually seemed almost sane. But then she goes and does _this_. 

A yawn cracked Mello's jaw, and he glanced from his bed to the makeshift bed on his floor, then back to the bed. After a moment of debate, he climbed up onto his bed and managed to shift Matt over without waking him up. Settling himself between the bed sheets, Mello studied the other boy's sleeping face in silence. A little shyly, he leaned toward him and pressed a soft kiss to the boy's lips, and was startled when Matt shifted and mumbled something. Convinced not t be caught, Mello turned his back on him and lay down, shutting his eyes even as a pink blush spread over his cheeks.

Roger broke the news to Mello and Near, nearly a week later.

"L has died." He'd informed them.

And Mello had gone through a flood of emotion, even though he'd known, somehow, that _something__wasn't right_, and somewhere, at the back of his mind, he knew what had so upset Aurora. He wasn't sure how she'd known, but he knew.

"I'm leaving." Mello announced to Aurora and Matt, several weeks after that, the day he turned fifteen. They were outside, bundled up in warm jackets and wandering aimlessly along through the snow. Aurora was quiet and withdrawn, and didn't always respond when someone talked to her, but she was slowly getting better. There were still scars on her arms, though, and sometimes Mello thought he saw a new cut, but he didn't say anything. Matt refused to believe it, and Eliza just grew quiet when he'd brought it up once. 

Aurora just stared at him with wide, blank eyes and offered a soft, _'Because I deserve it.'_

And Matt had somehow, somewhere, gotten his hands on another cigarette, and he'd been unlucky enough for Mello to be the one who caught him. The blonde had chewed him out and forcibly ransacked the other boy's room for more, and ever since he's tried to keep an eye on him. But he knew Matt was still smoking. Aurora knew it, too, -- could smell it -- and would avoid Matt whenever she smelled smoke on him. Mello hated to admit it, but that seemed like the best punishment.

He didn't really want to leave. Not when things were crumbling at his feet like this.

"When?" Matt asked of Mello finally, and he didn't sound surprised to hear it.

"I don't know. Soon." The blonde shrugged a shoulder and glanced back at the girls walking behind them. Neither looked very surprised. He looked to Matt, walking at his side. He would miss them; all of them. Even Eliza, a little bit, even though they didn't really get along. And especially Matt. 

"Then I'm going, too!" Matt finally decided, and he paused to glance back at the girls, pondering his decision. 

Mello blinked, surprised. He hadn't really expected that.

"…I don't want to be here anymore, either." Aurora admitted softly. 

Eliza looked from one companion to the next, hesitating, "I'm not even in the top five students here, even after you three leave. It wouldn't be a major loss if I tagged along."

Mello looked from the girls to Matt and, speaking firmly, told him, "You're still too young to leave, Matt. You're only fourteen."

"So is Eliza!" the redhead snapped back in defense.

"She's fifteen next week, Matt."

"And I'm fifteen in February!"

Mello shook his head, "I want you three to stay here and cover my tracks until I can find someplace to live. L left me enough money… I'll go somewhere and get a big apartment or something." He sent a wicked grin at Eliza, "And I'll find you a nice doghouse, too."

She glared at him.

Aurora agreed to the plan before Matt could form a response, "We'll hold you to that, right Mattie-boy?"

"Wh-- Mattie-boy!"

She laughed lightly, and it gave everyone pause, because it seemed like forever since she had laughed, and she only reached over to snap a corner off of Mello's chocolate bar and walk on ahead of them, chewing thoughtfully and calmly.

Calmly, that is, until Matt and Mello both scooped up handfuls of snow and hurled two cold, half-slush, snowballs at the back of her head, and Eliza shrieked for her to get down a whole three seconds too late.


	17. Chapter Fifteen

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter Fifteen**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings:**sexual innuendo**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Fifteen**

Friday, March 25th, 2005

"Ugh… fuck, Matt put that out!" Aurora snatched the cigarette from between Matt's lips and squashed it out in the ashtray. He glanced up from his game, frowning at her in annoyance. 

"Those aren't exactly cheap, you know. A pack of twenty is almost four-and-a half bucks!"

"So quit smoking. It's disgusting." Eliza brushed past him with an armload of groceries, "Thanks for driving, Aurora."

"Yeah. No problem." The red-haired girl deposited the bag she was carrying onto the counter and swept from the room without another word. 

Matt rose an eyebrow, "What's up with her?" He reached for the pack of cigarettes on the table.

Eliza took it away and dropped a box of Chinese take-out in front of him, "I brought food. You can have your cancer sticks _outside,_ after you eat." Turning back to putting away the groceries, she finally replied, "Someone bumped their cart into the car. Didn't even leave a scratch, but she about had a heart attack over it."

Matt chuckled, digging into his lunch.

Their third month into life in the U.S., and they were living almost comfortably in a two-story house at the outskirts of Los Angeles, California, getting by on the money that came in from Matt and Aurora's jobs. The house wasn't really fancy or anything; it had three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and the standard rooms of a basic house, bought from a portion of the money left over from their inheritances that had come from L, after their plane tickets from the United Kingdom to the United States. Another portion had gone toward getting their U.S. citizenship, -- sponsored in part by Whammy's House -- made possible for a group of underage teenagers thanks to their backgrounds as L's heirs and being child geniuses. They all tested out of high school, and while Matt and Aurora declined to go to a college, Eliza attended a few classes at Los Angeles' Community College.

Mello was in the Mafia. It had come as a shock to them, at first, but he'd explained that they had similar goals -- to stop Kira. He usually kept them pretty far removed from his mafia business, though, and so one of them could really complain. He'd visit sometimes, or come to them when life in the mafia was just too much -- because, genius or not, he was still only 15.

Eliza -- the only one of the three that had any sense of money -- took charge of the meager remainder of their pooled inheritances and had their money put into a bank. Matt and Aurora's expensive hobbies -- electronics and, more recently, Aurora's newly found love of cars -- forced the two of them to get jobs. Those same expensive hobbies gave them quite a bit of background in computers, and so they'd snagged a decent-paying job programming and fixing computers, and did a good deal of work from home. 

Matt threw away his take-out container and stopped to stand at the window, fiddling absently with his lighter. Down in the driveway, Aurora was softly buffing an area on the passenger-side door of her candy-red Dodge Viper. 

"Mello called today. We're probably gonna be gone tonight, out on surveillance." He told Eliza.

"Aurora and you?" she paused to glance up, "I thought Mello was going to keep you out of his gang stuff."

"Yeah. But it's nothing big." Matt shrugged a shoulder and got himself a glass of milk before leaving.

When he stepped out onto the driveway, Aurora had turned on the car radio and crawled underneath the vehicle. Sipping his milk, he admired the curve of her thighs and the junction between them where her jeans had been pulled taut against her.

"I think those are my jeans." He commented, loud enough for her to hear.

A hand emerged from under the car and purposefully smeared black grease across the left thigh and hip, "Well, you thought wrong. Now stop staring at my crotch and get me a rag."

"I thought Eliza said a cart bumped into the door. Did it crawl under the car, too?" he questioned, crouching by the half-rotted box of rags she'd dragged outside. Raising his eyebrows, he picked up a red cloth from the top of the pile and held it up between two fingers, "Are these my boxers?"

"They were in the trash. There's a hole in them, anyway."

"You wipe your hands on my dirty boxers?"

"I washed them. Just shut up and get me a rag."

Laughing, he brought the boxers to her.

"You're getting off on this, aren't you?" she asked exasperatedly.

"Maybe." He chuckled and changed the subject, "Mello called. He wants us to do some surveillance for him." Bending to set his glass on the pavement, he lit a cigarette and eyed the curve of Aurora's ass -- because, really, it was the most interesting thing to look at right now.

"I thought--"

He cut her off, "That he wasn't getting us involved? It's just surveillance; sitting in front of a computer that's hooked up to a camera and watching some guy eat his supper and get off before he hits the sack. And we're the best." He exhaled a cloud of smoke, "And he needs some unfamiliar faces."

"You just wanna see the guy wank." She laughed, "I don't care, I guess, but I'll skip that part of the show." She cursed under breath, and a wrench clattered to the pavement, "But I don't want someone recognizing us later. Go buy a couple boxes of hair dye." Another muffled curse, "And get me some oil for the Harley, too."

"Yeah, all right. What color dye?"

"I don't care. "A pause, "If you get pink, it's going in _your_ hair."

His lips curved up, "All of it?"

"All of it. Every hair on your body." She replied firmly.

"What if I don't want to?" he rose his eyebrows in amusement.

"Then I'll tie you down and do it myself!" there was a brief moment of silence, and then she picked up on where this was headed, "That's sick. Sick and… vaguely sexy."

"Pink hair dye it is." He pushed off the wall and strode toward his Harley.

A wrench flew out from underneath the car, and narrowly missed his ankle, "Don't you dare, you dog!"

* * *

Bent over his computer as he read the information Mello had e-mailed them, Matt could feel Aurora's eyes on him. He grinned to himself.

He'd only just come out of the shower after washing out the excess black hair dye when Mello's e-mail had come in. No longer terribly shy of being caught in any state of undress, he'd just thrown on some jeans and gone out shirtless.

"Whenever you're done staring at my ass, come over here and check out our target's profile." He commented.

There were a few footsteps as she entered the room, and then a hand slapped against his rear, making him jump in surprise. Because, sure, she wasn't all that shy anymore -- she never really was -- but she still had that air of hesitance that kept her from touching people in any way outside of a playful friendship. And she _certainly_ never went around smacking Matt's ass!

A black-haired boy grinned crookedly at him.

It took him a long moment to realize that he was looking at Aurora.

"Holy shit!" he cried suddenly, standing up straight to get a better look.

Her hair had grown out to just below her shoulder blades since they'd left Whammy's, and she'd kept the bangs trimmed back to chin-length, but now all he saw was chin-length black hair sticking out from under a black felt hat that looked like it had seen better days.

Her body-shape, too, looked like it had changed. She normally had some nice curves -- Matt should know, because he'd had plenty of opportunities to map them out. Maybe she wasn't quite the skinny, hourglass-shaped beauty that women in the magazines were, but Matt didn't really mind; those girls were mostly photo-shopped anyway. But her chest was as flat as Matt's now, and her already boyish hips were made even slimmer-looking with a pair of low-riding black leather pants with a lace-up crotch. There was a noticeable lack of masculine anatomy that gave her away, but he decided against commenting on it. The shirt she wore was one he'd never seen before, an almost-form fitting t-shirt that revealed a thin strip of pale skin just above her waistband.

All Matt could think to do was stare.

Aurora's grin spread, "You like?"

"…Where did you get those pants?"

"Mello left them here. I figured he wouldn't care if I borrowed them." She looked thoughtful, pressing her hands to her hips and twisting about to inspect the back, "I kinda like them. I'll have to ask where he gets 'em." Done inspecting herself, she leaned forward and braced a hand on the desk, "Is this all he sent?"

"No there's… there's more." He shook out of his trance and looked back to the computer screen.

* * *

"You're such an idiot, Matt." Aurora commented blandly from within the bathroom. When she emerged, she was rolling up the ace bandaging that she'd used to flatten her chest. Eying Matt where he leaned against the wall, she finally said, "Fine. Go lay down."

He took a moment to appreciate her figure -- because she was braless, now, and still wearing that tight little shirt. -- before stripping off his own shirt and heading into his own bedroom, depositing his shirt and belt on the floor just inside. Pants slung low over his hips, he picked his way through the mess and finally lay out on top of the sheet, pillowing his head on his forearms and watching Aurora approach. She carried a small bottle of oil with her, dangling lightly between her fingers. The bed dipped as she sat near his hip, pausing to pour some of the softly scented oil over her hands and rubbing them together to warm it. After a second, she shifted and straddled his thighs, oiled hands moving to his shoulders.

"It's no wonder you're all stiff… bending over a computer half the day without moving a muscle." She mumbled to herself.

"It's part of the job." He replied. A moan slipped out of his lips, "You're so good at this…"

Eliza paused in the open door and rose her eyebrows at them, "Matt, if anyone ever heard you moaning like that, they'd think you were getting laid."

He only grinned goofily at her as Aurora's deft fingers massaged the muscles of his back into something akin to pudding.

The dark-haired girl rested her back against the doorframe, arms crossed, "So your spy game… how was it?"

"Boring. As. Hell." Matt replied with a small sigh.

"Surveillance is never fun." Aurora added softly, an then with a laugh, "It's just sitting in front of a computer that's hooked up to a camera and watching some guy eat his supper and get off before he hits the sack."

Eliza rose an eyebrow at that.

Aurora only shook her head a little and, shifting off of Matt, she poked him lightly in the side, "Hey, dog, roll over."

He rolled onto his back obediently, stretching a little.

As Aurora settled over his thighs again and positioned his arms at his sides, Eliza spoke up, "Why do you call him 'dog' anyway? It's kinda weird."

Aurora glanced up, "I dunno. It suits him, I guess. And it's not like it really bothers him any, right?" And Matt just shrugged a little, and Aurora stared at him for a second before glancing back to Eliza, "Hey Eliza, c'mere. You wanna learn how to do this, don't you?"

The black-haired girl started, "I… What?"

"Come on, don't get shy. It's a good workout." Aurora grinned crookedly.

"Um…" Eliza stepped closer to the bed, a small blush on her cheeks as she looked down at Matt. He stared back, looking almost sleepy, "I… uh… Is it okay? Matt?"

Aurora didn't give Matt a chance to reply before she reached over and grabbed the other girl's arm, half-dragging her onto the bed and over Matt's stomach, laughing a little.

"Uwa! Aurora!" Eliza cried out in surprise, righting herself to sit on the sheets beside the boy. 

He was laughing, "I don't care, Eliza. Go ahead."

Aurora nodded and shifted further back on the bed, kneeling over Matt's shins, and she slid an arm around the other girl's waist, "There you go, see? Now just sit over his legs, and I'll show you what to do." 

Shyly, Eliza slid over Matt's thighs like Aurora had been, and the other girl reached around her, taking her hands and softly pressing them to Matt's chest, murmuring the name of each muscle as she touched it and showing her how to massage it. Eventually, Aurora simply rested against the other girl's back, just watching. Matt was fighting to keep from dozing off, transfixed by the two girls.

"O-Okay, um, so…" Eliza retracted her hands, blushing a little, but still looking rather proud of herself, "So is that it?"

Aurora took her hands again, laughing lightly, "That's just the chest and shoulders, Eliza. Here." She led the other girl's hands to Matt's abs, and laughing again, told her, "Careful. He's pretty ticklish."

Eliza giggled a little at that and allowed Aurora to lead her hands across the boy's stomach, until her fingers brushed the waistband of his pants. 

Face turning red, Eliza pulled her hands away and covered her face, "Um, I… I'm gonna go do the dishes now!"

Aurora tried very hard not to crack up, but only held out until the other girl crossed the threshold of the door and disappeared down the hall.


	18. Chapter Sixteen

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter sixteen**  
Author:**Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating:**M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings:**cussing, violence**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Sixteen**

There were very few things that could get Aurora out of bed at one o'clock in the morning. A nuclear war, for instance, or maybe a house fire, might motivate her to get up and have a look around.

Knocking at the front door probably wouldn't.

But it wasn't some polite little knocking that woke her up. It was loud, continual _slamming_ against the door, coupled with screams for help.

And so she was out of her bed and at the front door, swinging it open so fast that Mello -- whom she could only assume was the one who'd woken her -- stumbled inside and ran into her, his shoulder bashing into her collarbone and thin arms grabbing onto her for balance.

Holding him by the hips, she asked, "Mello… what the hell?"

There was a sort of wheezing sound, and she glanced down at him, noting dirty bandages over his shoulder and the faint smell of burnt hair and flesh. Managing to push him back, she stared blankly at the half-unraveled bandaging over the left side of his face.

"Hurts…" he hissed before promptly passing out. Aurora, unprepared for the sudden dead weight, just barely managed to catch him before he crumpled to the ground, and the enormity of the situation hit her. "MAAAAAATTTTTTTTT!"

The scream brought not only Matt, but Eliza as well, rushing downstairs and looking ready for battle. After the briefest period of shock, Matt took the blonde from Aurora and hauled him over to the couch and Eliza ran for the emergency kit.

Aurora and Matt stood over the pale form for a moment, at a loss as to what to do. The blonde was burnt pretty badly, and the quality of the bandages suggested that he'd been to a hospital -- he wasn't stupid, after all. But it also looked like he hadn't slept in awhile, and possibly hadn't showered, either.

"It's just like him…" Matt finally decided with a shake of his head and, brushing his bangs from his face, he knelt and pulled at the zipper to the other boy's vest. Aurora shook out of her shock and helped him.

When Eliza brought back the medical kit, the two had managed to strip Mello down to nothing and had laid a sheet over his waist -- for decency, she assumed; Eliza handed them the medical kit and inspected the leather pants and vest that had been tossed aside, biting down on the urge to ask if he'd been wearing underwear. After a moment's debate, she declared the clothing unwashable and gingerly carried them outside to throw away.

It's nearly two hours later by the time Aurora and Matt have cleaned Mello off completely with damp towels, used nearly all the antiseptic they could get their hands on and half the bandages. Aurora trimmed the blackened edges out of his hair, and Matt brought the sheet up and completely wrapped him in it. The two stood over him, staring down at the ghost-like figure, and Aurora was the first to look away.

"He'll be fine for the night. You two go back to bed; I'll go out and get some painkillers."

Matt nodded numbly, and Eliza brushed her fingers through her hair, "Yeah. Okay."

* * *

Mello remained either unconscious or heavily drugged for the next few days, and wrapped in only his blanket and a pair of boxers because Aurora pointed out that putting a shirt on would only irritate the burn on his shoulder. Mello seemed complacent enough about it, but Matt suspected the painkillers. 

Someone was always home, on 'guard duty' as they called it, making sure that Mello took his painkillers and didn't light anything on fire and changed his bandaging and didn't try to take off anywhere. Aurora had resorted to hiding his motorcycle at the back of the garage and pulling the wheels off after his second attempt at a painkiller-induced joyride. Outside of the baby-sitting aspect, he was generally an amicable houseguest, and no one really minded him much.

It was after a week and a half, when the burns had healed up well enough that he didn't need to be kept on painkillers and watched, that Aurora put the wheels back on his motorcycle and they allowed him to come and go as he pleased. He still spent his nights there, though, and eventually he demanded a bed to sleep on. It was after a short debate that they decided he could room with Matt -- because, after all, Matt had a king-sized bed. There was plenty of room. Matt had looked a little irked at the thought, but didn't really complain. 

He didn't complain at all, that is, until Mello began to stay out late and come back drunk. 

It was one of those particular nights, when Matt woke up to Mello's footsteps in the hallway. Something slammed into the door, and Matt rolled onto his side, facing the wall. The door creaked open, and he listened as Mello stumbled through the room and eventually landed on the bed, an errant arm brushing Matt's back. Matt just mumbled at him to stay on his own half.

Mello must not have heard him, or else he simply didn't care, because a thin hand slid against the backside of Matt's boxers and fingers brushed the backs of his thighs.

"What the hell, Mello! Cut it out!" he snapped, swatting at the hand. And here he'd thought that Mello had gotten over that stupid crush a long time ago! Rolling to properly fend off the advances, Matt found the blonde barely half and arm's length away from him, reeking of alcohol and smoke and a few things he didn't want to name. Matt deflected a hand that reached for him and sat up, "What the hell…! Get the fuck out of my bed!"

Mello giggled and sat up, letting the sheet slide down his bared chest, and Matt shifted against the wall. 

Mello giggled again and closed in on him, "Mm… Matty…"

"Come on, Mello! Get away from me! You smell horrible!" Matt shoved at the blonde's chest, but Mello shoved back, and despite his slight frame and inebriation, managed to pin the younger boy to the wall and kiss him with bruising force. Matt jerked and froze, still trying to get him off.

All at once, Mello was yanked off him and hit the floor with a thud, cursing. Matt gasped for breath and wiped his mouth off on the back of his arm.

"Stupid twat. Get out." When he looked up, Aurora stood menacingly over the prostrated blonde.

Not getting up yet, Mello snarled, "What's it matter to you? Get out of my way."

Before Matt could think to process any of this, there was a gun in the girl's hand, leveled with the blonde's chest, "I _said_, get out."

Mello stared at the gun, and Matt froze to the spot. Finally, the blonde scoffed, sitting up, "You wouldn't shoot me, little girl."

"Are you so sure you want to doubt me? I'm the one with the gun here." She stared him down, expression blank, "If I shoot you on my own property, its self-defense. You're trespassing and assaulting a member of the household."

Mello stared for a little longer, flipped his gaze to Matt, and then back to the gun. Finally, he pushed himself to his feet. Aurora's expression didn't change, even as he stepped toward her, stopping only when the barrel of the gun was pressed into his chest. Keeping a steady gaze on her face, he told her, "I love him. What do you have to say for yourself?"

She turned the gun just a little, "It's not love when you have to force yourself on him."

"He'll come around."

"You're drunk. And fucked up." He fisted a hand and looked like he might punch her. She stopped him by pressing the gun a little more firmly against him, "Careful. My finger might slip."

Mello scowled at her, and finally backed down. One final glance at Matt, and he stormed from the room, slamming the front door.

Matt finally found his voice, "Wh-What the fuck, Aurora! You were really going to shoot him, weren't you!"

She glanced up, expression only mildly curious, and then turned the gun on him. He yelped and threw his arms up, "Are you insane! What are you doing!" 

She pulled the trigger, and a stream of water hit him between the eyes.

"I'm not stupid, Matt." She said flatly, "And anyway, I got him to leave."

Matt could only gape for a few moments, water dripping down his face, and when he finally got his faculties in order, he snapped, "You didn't have to get all violent, though! God, Aurora, you about gave me a heart attack!"

She quieted, lowering the gun to her side, "…Should I have let him have at you, then? You know I couldn't do that, Matt."

"I…" he turned to stare down at his sheets.

"I did both of you a favor. I don't think that's something Mello really wanted to do to you."

"This… we're talking about _Mello_, here, Aurora. He wouldn't do something like that." The boy recanted.

"He's drunk."

"But still…"

"Tch!" she turned, throwing the gun onto his bed, "Whatever. I'm staying out of this, then. Don't expect my help if he comes back."

Matt stared at the gun in silence, listening as Aurora stalked down the hall, and moments later, her Harley roared to life and took off down the street. Awhile later, Eliza peeked in to ask what was going on, and Matt just told her it was nothing.

* * *

Aurora's mind was a blur of thoughts, ones she couldn't comprehend, and ones she didn't want to comprehend, and somewhere in the midst of it all was _Matt_, and then she was back _there_, watching Rochel cry and scream until his throat was bloody…

And then just as suddenly, her mind was empty and numb, and she stared up at the night sky in wonderment.

A/N: Y halo thar, dear readers! I don't comment much, but since I'm a horrible perfectionist, I felt the pressing need to point out my grave error... Mello doesn't get his burns until November 11th, 2009! I'm years ahead of schedule! . Augh... but I didn't realize this until I was writing chapter 20, so I can't exactly change it now without renovating the other chapters, too. So it stays.

(Would anyone have even realized this if I hadn't pointed it out? I kinda doubt it, but... ;; ) 


	19. Chapter Seventeen

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter seventeen**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **the usual sexual innuendo**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Seventeen**

Matt paced past Eliza for the seventh or eighth time that morning. She only glanced up at him, her legs curled against her chest.

"We should go get help, Matt…" she said softly, and he paused to stare out the kitchen window at the driveway.

"From _who_, exactly?" he snapped, and she visibly flinched, curling in on herself as he passed her again. He mumbled a faint 'sorry.'

The roar of a motorcycle engine tore through the air, catching their attention, and both of them bolted for the door just as the engine died down. Aurora looked up at them, face smeared with dirt and a cut across her left cheek. Her leather pants were worn and scuffed along the side of her leg, and her arm was smeared with dirt and blood.

A glance at the scuffed paint and chrome on the motorcycle confirmed their suspicions.

"Aurora!" Eliza rushed forward to embrace the other girl out of pure relief. Aurora didn't say anything, just absently stroked Eliza's hair and stared up at Matt. She looked like a battered puppy, he decided.

After a moment he just sighed and shook his head, "Get in here and take a shower. I'll get the bandages."

* * *

"Sorry…"

Matt didn't even glance up from the first aid kit as he mumbled around his cigarette, "I don't want to hear it."

"_Matt--_"

"Shut up."

Aurora clammed up, shoulders drooping a little and she stood numbly in the entryway of the living room. Matt continued to focus on the medical kit, mindlessly arranging and rearranging things. Finally, he motioned for her to come closer, and looked up in confusion when he couldn't hear her do so.

She dropped her eyes, fingers twining in her damp hair. "You're mad at me."

Matt's first reaction was to call her childish, but he bit the words back, saying instead, "Why on earth would I be mad at you?!"

She turned her face away and didn't respond.

"Come here." He tried again, "If your arm gets infected because you're being stupid, then I _will_ be mad at you."

Hesitating, she fingered the edges of the road rash, and replied softly, "…I'll do it myself."

"Just get over here!"

Finally she complied, slinking over to where he was sitting on the couch and settled on the floor in front of him. He blew his bangs up and stamped out his cigarette in the ashtray before lifting her face to inspect the cut on her cheek. Almost absently, he brushed her bangs back from her face and tucked it behind her ear, fingertips lingering over her skin. She stared at him, expression a little confused.

"Hey. Wanna tell me what's going on?" he asked, voice low.

Blinking slowly, she didn't respond immediately. He leaned forward, watching her eyes flicker to him and away nervously and her tongue dart out to wet her lips; she didn't outwardly reject his proximity. He just kissed her forehead lightly, and felt silly for doing it, but at least she seemed to calm down a little bit. And her hair smelled pretty nice, too, like roses.

He wrapped his arms around her, feeling her shift closer and rest her cheek against his chest.

"Matt… I…" she swallowed and, voice wavering, started again, "I don't… know what I'm supposed to do…"

He didn't reply.

"I… when I saw Mello, I just got so mad…! 'Cause… 'cause he can't just _do_ that stuff!" she turned her face up to look at him. Matt just nodded a little, fully engrossed in running his fingers through her hair, and when her fragmentary mumbling became mostly unintelligible, he interrupted.

"Hey Aurora? Does it really matter? If you know everything, I mean…" he held up a few damp strands of hair to inspect.

"What? But-- Mello, he--"

"He was drunk, just like you said. He'll probably forget all about it. And no one actually got hurt, after all. He just surprised me, is all."

She stared at him, unable to form a response. He turned his face to hers and leaned in, pausing when they were only a few centimeters apart when he thought to ask permission. She shyly bridged the gap and swallowed his first syllable.

* * *

Cigarette hanging from between his lips, Matt sprawled out oh his bed to study the program print-out his boss had sent him, a broken pencil absently marking it up.

And then Aurora walked past his bedroom door, carrying a laundry basket and calling, "I think we should do it, Matt."

By the time Aurora had turned her head to say more, Matt's shirt was nowhere to be found and his jeans were already undone. It was only her strange stare that kept him from going further.

"What?" he asked, blinking across the war-zone that was his room.

"What are you doing?" her eyes shifted along the planes of his chest, hovering a moment over the waistband of his boxers, before turning back to meet his eyes.

"I'm, uh… undressing?" he began to look vaguely uncomfortable.

"Yes, I see that." She finally shut her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, "The question is, _why_ are you undressing?"

"Um… I thought you said…"

Mentally going over the brief exchange, she finally concluded, "You weren't listening." A pause, where she opened her eyes again to stare at him, and then she snapped, "Put your pants back on!"

Trying to cover his embarrassment, he did so, clearing his throat and asking, "So…what was it you were talking about?"

Slowly shaking her head, she answered, "A pet. I think we should get one… another one."

"Why?" a pause, "…We have a pet?"

Waving her hand over his room and staring pointedly as he searched on all fours for his shirt, she answered, "We do. But you don't make all that great of a guard dog, and I don't want you curled up in my lap or lapping milk from a saucer." She paused to envision that before shaking her head.

"I'm not your pet!" he absently chucked a book in her direction.

"…and you're violent." Aurora glanced over her shoulder to see if the wall behind her had been damaged.

Frowning, he turned his back on her, "Whatever. I don't care, as long as it's not a poodle or something. Why aren't you asking Eliza this?"

"I will." She nodded and turned to leave, calling over her shoulder, "Your shirt is behind your dresser."

Matt cursed.

* * *

It had been weeks since the brief exchange about getting a pet, and Matt hadn't really expected anything to come of it. And so, he forgot about it.

It was a rather nice day outside, and Matt was home alone, playing on his Playstation 2 and considering whether or not he should go outside. Aurora had left to drop Eliza off in town somewhere with friends; Matt was just surprised that the older girl had so willingly dropped what she was doing to shuttle Eliza around all the time. Matt could drive the motorcycle, but Eliza hadn't wanted to risk learning it, and that left Aurora, who was sixteen as of last February, as the only one who could legally drive the car.

"I'm here! What are your next two wishes?" Aurora called out cheerfully, startling Matt out of his train of thought.

"Well, I could go for a soda… and while you're at it you could come over here and make out with me…" he pretended to count his wishes off on his fingers.

"Too bad." And before he could look to her, a black and gold puppy with a white belly and chest was plopped in his lap. He stared at it. Its tongue lolled out and it stared back.

"Look, Matt! Isn't she adorable?" Aurora cried in an uncharacteristically girlish fashion, resting her chin atop the gamer's head and reaching around to play with the floppy dog ears, "I think we should name her Trinity. What do you think?"

"…You bought a dog?" he managed.

Aurora came around the couch and crouched on the floor in front of him to play with the animal, "No, I found her. She was wandering around."

"You brought in a stray? How do you know she doesn't belong to someone? Or that she doesn't have rabies?"

"Look." Aurora blinking up at him, showing him the little name tag that hung around the animal's neck. It read 'Please take good care of us.' "And I had a vet look at her. She's about as healthy as a stray can get."

Matt finally reached out to pet the dog's fur, a smile spreading across his face, "…OK. Then I guess it's all right. But I think we should call her 'Dawn'."

"Why Dawn?" the girl blinked up at him.

He grinned, "Didn't you know? Aurora is the name of the Roman goddess of dawn, known for her strength and feminine charm."

Aurora just stared, "…And? Why name her after me, in some round-about way…?"

Still grinning, he answered, "Cause she's pretty, like you."

Aurora blushed hotly and hid her face in the dog's fur, "…Call her whatever you want."

"OK!" he cheerfully lifted the puppy so it stood on its hind legs on his lap, "What do you think of that, Dawn?"

The newly named Dawn yapped and wagged her tail, wriggling.

* * *

A/N: Hooray! New chapters! But I didn't get my computer fixed; I just managed to talk it into letting me move a few files to my flash drive... But none of that matters, because... I gotta jar of dirt!  
No, wait, that's not right... ;; Oops...


	20. Chapter Eighteen

Title: Candy Kisses Chapter eighteen

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter eighteen**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **cussing and kissing**  
Summary: **_Too much rain and not enough common sense later, Matt was shouting over the rush of wind, rain, and passing traffic as he clung to Aurora's midsection._

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Eighteen**

Thunder flashed across the sky, the house went black, and Aurora cursed loudly from her post on the living room couch, followed by her whine, "_Maaaattttt…_"

"It's your turn!" he snapped back automatically from somewhere in the vicinity of the upstairs.

"_Please_?" she leaned her head backward, hands hovering over the keyboard of her black-screened laptop, "It's raining!"

"Yeah, I noticed." He appeared at the base of the stairs, a towel over his hair and his soaked-through shirt in hand. Dawn followed on his heels, wandering over to sit on the couch beside Aurora.

"Get up and do it yourself, Aurora!" Eliza commanded from the kitchen before the battle of wills could go further, adding, "It's your fault you never got a decent battery for that laptop!"

Aurora rolled her eyes and set aside the laptop to slink past the boy, "_Yes, mother_…"

Matt laughed victoriously and moved to claim her spot on the couch when Eliza added, "And keep your wet ass off the couch, Matt!"

The blue-eyed girl stuck her tongue out at him before disappearing out the front door and into the storm.

Nearly a half-hour later, the power had yet to return, and Aurora came back in looking like a drowned rat. A fairly murderous drowned rat. "The generator's out of gas!"

Matt looked up from his rather comfortable, towel-covered seat on the couch, to point out, "There's a gas can in the garage. I just filled it yesterday."

"No, you didn't fill it yesterday!" she held up said gas can, waving it in a way that she probably couldn't do were it full, "You were _supposed_ to fill it yesterday, but you never did!" When he only stared back at her, she stomped her foot and informed him, "I'm going out to get gas, and _you're_ coming with me."

"I thought the car broke down."

"It did." She finally stomped across the carpet, wet, muddy shoes and all, to forcefully pull him off the couch, "That's why we're taking the motorcycle. Now get a shirt on, or else I'll make you go without one."

Too much rain and not enough common sense later, Matt was shouting over the rush of wind, rain, and passing traffic as he clung to Aurora's midsection.

"You're clean insane! Aurora, are you listening to me?! _Insane_!"

And she only pretended not to hear. Eventually, he was forced to give up and shifted closer to her in an attempt to warm up. However, wet leather wasn't exactly warm, and her hair, though tied in a ponytail and kept mostly-securely beneath her jacket, kept getting in his mouth. Rain streamed off his hair and down the collar of his jacket, soaking his shirt, and he wondered briefly if Aurora was having the same problem, because she didn't seem to mind the weather in the least.

When they reached the gas station and dismounted from the bike, Matt huddled against a support beam that offered some shelter from the wind. Aurora unhooked the bungee cords that held on the gas can and set it down to begin filling it up. The shivering mass of fabric that was Matt took off his goggles and cupped his gloved hands over his face, breathing deeply to warm up his cheeks and nose.

The rain didn't reach them, and Matt had his support beam, but the wind still whipped past him, and he was _cold_ and _wet_ and "God dammit, Aurora, why did you have to drag me out in this?!"

But when he looked up to properly chew her out, she was gone. The gas tank was strapped back onto the bike, and the Harley stood alone, leaning on its kickstand. He turned to look toward the station, thinking maybe she'd gone inside, and something warm settled over his shoulders. He automatically curled it around himself, breathing in the scent of leather, and realized somewhat dimly that it was Aurora's jacket.

In just her t-shirt and jeans, the jacket-less girl strode past him, "Come on, let's hit the road."

"Wha--But--" he started to protest, "Aurora, you'll freeze to death!"

"Just shut up and get on." She ordered, mounting the bike and balancing it between her thighs.

Feeling guilty, but so, _so_ grateful, he secured his slid his arms into the sleeves, secured his goggles over his eyes, and climbed on behind her. Almost impatient, she reached around and pulled him closer to her back, wrapping one of his arms around her stomach and ordering him to hold on.

They didn't even get out of town before the storm got worse, visibility was reduced to almost nothing, and Matt could've _sworn_ it was hailing now, too. Under his hands, he could feel Aurora's abdominal muscles quivering, like there were a million butterflies caught just beneath her skin, but she didn't complain about being cold. He glanced down to her bared arms, and he sort of wanted to give her coat back, because he didn't think she'd complain about being cold even if she really were freezing to death.

Aurora said something that he didn't catch, thanks to a passing semi, and then she was turning the motorcycle off the main road and into a parking lot, pulling the bike up close to the side of a bordering building until it was relatively sheltered. Killing the engine, she nudged him lightly, telling him to get off.

"I can hardly see in this. Let's hole up here for awhile." She explained as she got off the bike herself. Matt just stared at her blue-tinged lips and nodded numbly.

Almost as soon as they stepped inside the door of what looked to be a bar, a young woman, not much older than them, came bustling over.

"Aura? What are you doing out in this storm?!" she glanced to Matt before leaning in to ask Aurora in a low voice, "Is that… that's _him_?!"

A pink blush spread over the younger girl's cheeks, and she pushed her friend away, "_Shut up!_" huffing, she asked, "Can we hang out here until the rain let's up, Brandy?"

And the one called Brandy seemed to notice their rain-drenched, half-frozen forms for the first time, "Oh, of course! Get upstairs and get yourselves warmed up. You can borrow some of my clothes if you need, and you…" she paused to look Matt up and down, "They might be big on you, but you can borrow some of Nick's clothes. They're in a basket by my bed."

Matt nodded and Aurora thanked her before urging the boy towards the back of the bar.

"I'll bring you up some hot chocolate!" Brandy called as she departed for the kitchen.

When they'd reached the second-floor apartment, Aurora had fetched them towels to dry off with, and awhile later they were seated at the small table in the kitchen, sipping hot chocolate. Aurora and Brandy chatted idly, and Matt just sat quietly off to the side. Finally both girls turned to him.

"Matt, this is Brandy. Her boyfriend, Nick, is that guy at the parts store that you don't get along with." Aurora told him, laughing a little, "Brandy, Matt. Eliza and I live with him."

Brandy offered her hand to him with a smile, "It's nice to finally meet'cha, kid. Aura's always carrying on about you."

"I do not." The blue-eyed girl huffed quietly.

Matt just took Brandy's hand and shook it, "Nice to meet you, too."

"Well, I gotta get back to work now. Help yourselves to whatever you can find, and if you want anything to drink, it's on the house."

"Is that the case? Well, I could go for a threesome…" Aurora leaned back in her chair, looking thoughtful. Matt whipped his head around to stare at her.

Brandy only laughed, "I know damn well you're not old enough for alcohol, so don't bother."

Aurora smirked a little at Matt's confusion, "It's a shot drink, Matt. One of those ones you light on fire… they're pretty cool."

Brandy grabbed a lighter off a table and waved it, "I'm leaving now, and I'm taking the lighter with me!"

"Don't worry! Matt has one I can play with!" Aurora laughed, and the other girl just shook her head and started out the door to the stairway.

Matt settled back into his chair, smiling a little in amusement as he watched steam swirl up from his hot cocoa. Beside him, Aurora sneezed and rubbed her nose, reminding Matt of why they were there.

"I'll go find us something dry to put on." She said as her chair scraped across the floor.

He watched her walk through a door, and noticed guiltily how he could almost see through her shirt. Taking a sip from his drink and wishing he had a dry cigarette, he set his mug on the counter and got up to go after her.

The girl was crouched beside the bed, her back to the door as she sifted through a basket of clothes; Matt watched quietly for a second before shedding the leather jacket and, as an afterthought, his own soaked jacket and shirt. By the time she looked up, he had already wrapped his arms around her, hands rubbing her goose-fleshed arms. It was like hugging ice, he thought briefly.

She attempted to shrug him off, "Come on, Matt. Get off'a me. You'll get sick."

"I'm probably already sick." He argued, but backed off anyway. Instead, he took the towel that was draped over her shoulders and began drying her hair with it. She just sighed and allowed it. Matt silently studied her; she was shivering, and her lips were still a little blue.

Eventually, she found a t-shirt and a pair of drawstring pajama-pants. When she turned to surrender them to him, he moved on impulse, looping an arm around her neck and pulling her toward him, planting his lips on hers. Startled, she automatically tried to jerk away; he decided not to let her, because this kinda felt nice, and didn't he read somewhere that body warmth was the best way to treat hypothermia? With that thought in mind, he tugged her a little closer, shivering a little when her wet shirt was pressed to his bare chest. She relaxed a little, letting her hands rest against his waist passively and almost shyly returning the kiss, imitating his fumbled attempts. Satisfied, he deepened the kiss and tangled his fingers in her damp hair; he shifted closer, effectively pinning her to the side of the bed, and one of his hands absently disposed of the clothes she'd dropped between them before laying against the flesh of her lower back, beneath her shirt. She made a noise at the back of her throat, fingers tightening against his waist; he took that as a positive sound and moved his hand further up her back, sliding his tongue against her lips.

This had definitely gone past hypothermia treatment, some small corner of his brain thought. Matt didn't particularly care.

His fingers came across the back of her bra, and he almost thoughtlessly fumbled with the latches.

And all at once she was pushing at his chest, startled by his actions, and he sighed mentally, removing his hand to her lower back again and parting their lips, leaning instead to kiss her neck.

She rolled her head to the side, hands still against his chest but no longer pushing him away. Her chest rose and fell with her soft, erratic breathing, and she sighed softly, "Matt… Matt, stop. I'm cold…"

Matt, for his part, was anything _but_ cold… he felt hot and flushed, and he was pretty sure he had the beginnings of a hard on. But she'd been out in that rain in her t-shirt, and was still soaked.

He backed off, keeping his head down and rubbing her arms absently, "Sorry. You should get into something dry."

She nodded, looking off to the side expressionlessly, and Matt went to retrieve the clothes he'd tossed aside and headed out to find another room to change in.

After he'd changed into the slightly too-big clothes and hung his own wet garments in the shower, Matt found Aurora in the living area, curled up in front of the radiator in an oversized sweater and sweatpants. Matt retrieved their hot chocolate from the kitchen and joined her.

"Matt…" she breathed softly, sounding uncertain.

He decided that he didn't want to hear her turn him down again, and laughingly commented, "Well, isn't this romantic? Sitting in front of a radiator in someone else's clothes, and drinking cold hot chocolate!"

Her blue eyes flickered to his, and she just sighed, smiling a little, "Yeah. A girl's dream date, for sure."


	21. Chapter Nineteen

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter nineteen**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **fluff**  
Summary:**

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Nineteen**

"If you're gonna smoke, do it downstairs."

Matt started, thumb slipping against the striker on his lighter. Considering Brandy as she pushed the door shut with her foot and strode back to the kitchen, he got up and shuffled out the door she'd just come in.

Aurora looked up when he left her alone on the couch and, glancing from him to Brandy, she remained quiet until he'd left, "You let Nick smoke up here."

"Not when I want to have a girl-to-girl talk with my best pal." Taking over the space where Matt had been, the bartender smiled.

Aurora closed the book she'd been reading and started to get up, "Then I should be leaving as well. Conversations between Nick and you are pretty sickening."

"I said 'girl-to-girl.'"

"Yeah, and?"

Brandy frowned, collaring the redhead, "You're so rude! Get back here; I wanna talk to you!"

The younger girl smiled uncertainly, "Well, I'm not sure I wanna talk to you… especially if you need to send Matt out of the room for it."

"You like him, don't you?"

Aurora paused, blinking, and then replied cheerfully, "Of course! He's one of my best friends!"

"You know that's not what I meant!" Brandy finally pulled her back onto the couch, "Now give me a straight answer."

The redhead's face cleared of all amusement, and she just frowned stubbornly, "…I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes you do! You love Matt, and you just don't want to admit it because you have some kind of stupid inferiority complex!" the older girl stood and paced around in agitation.

"What do you know about it, anyway?" Aurora questioned.

"I'm getting married next month; I hope I know something about it." Brandy brushed her brown-hair away from her face, exhaled, and sat down again, "Look, Aurora… I don't know if you're scared, or what, and I can't make any promises on Matt's behalf… but he seems like a good kid to me. And believe me, I've dated my share of bastards; I could spot one a mile away."

Aurora was silent.

"Come on, I wanna show you something." Brandy grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her towards the door to downstairs. They paused at the base of the stairs, where Brandy glanced around the dimly-lit bar until she spotted her target and pointed it out to Aurora.

Aurora looked where she was told and stared at a booth in the corner, where Matt was flanked by a pair of laughing girls. One of the girls ran her fingers through his hair, and he batted the hand away in irritation as the other girl leaned in to kiss his cheek.

Eyes glued on the scene, Aurora bit back the urge to scowl, "You told them to hit on him, didn't you?"

Brandy grinned, "I did. Are you jealous? That Matt's getting attention from other girls…" and then, lowering her head to speak directly into the other girl's ear, she added, "I'm sure Matt wouldn't mind if you went over there and hit on him."

One of the girls placed a hand on Matt's leg, deftly sliding it up his thigh; he started and pushed the offending limb away.

Aurora decided she'd had enough, "I don't care what you think; this isn't right." That said, she stalked across the bar calling out to the ones hanging all over Matt, "Hey, get away from him, you pedophiles!"

The two girls briefly challenged the newcomer, but Aurora didn't care; she pulled one out of the booth and seated herself beside Matt as the other girl got up to leave with her friend.

Matt watched them go with dispassionate eyes as he stamped out his cigarette, before chuckling at the sulking female beside him, "Jealous much?"

"Shut up." Was the automatic reply, and Aurora lowered her head, hiding her face before adding quietly, "…Yeah, a little."

He rose his eyebrows, considering her response before leaning back in the booth and lazily looping an arm around her shoulders. She hesitated before relaxing into his side.

* * *

A door shut somewhere, and Matt woke with a start, blinking sleepily. Someone made a shushing sound, and as soon as his eyes had adjusted to the light, the room darkened and Brandy stepped in front of him with a blanket.

"I'm sorry, did we wake you?" she asked softly, spreading the blanket over him. Something warm shifted at his side, and he looked down to Aurora, cuddled at his side on the couch. Brandy ruffled his hair and leaned in to kiss his forehead, "Go back to sleep, kiddo." She straightened and pulled his goggles off his head, glanced at them briefly, and set them on the end table before heading for her own bedroom.

At his side, Aurora shivered and shifted closer to him, mumbling something. A yawn cracked his jaw, and he hitched the blanket up around both of them and curled his arms around her before shutting his eyes again.

* * *

The next time Matt woke up, it was to the smell of bacon and the sound of hushed laughter, and some small part of him hoped to turn and see his parents.

Instead, he saw Brandy being bent over the kitchen table, in the midst of a (thankfully clothed) make-out session with Nick.

Matt hurriedly averted his gaze, but Nick must've noticed him, "Damnit. Kids are up."

Brandy giggled a little and came over to where the younger pair was, "Is she still asleep?"

"Huh? Uh… yeah." He looked down to the girl.

Brandy smiled, "She must really trust you, to sleep that deeply." When he glanced up in confusion, then back down to the girl, Brandy reached to stroke the girl's hair, "I'll take her into my bed, so you can shower and get some breakfast."

It was more of an impulse, but Matt shook his head, "No, I'm fine. Leave her here."

The bartender looked surprised, retracting her hands, "…ok."

Matt just remained where he was, quietly studying the redhaired girl's sleeping face, until eventually nature called and forced him to extract himself from her limp embrace.

When he returned, Aurora wasn't where he'd left her, and he turned to look around.

"She's in the bedroom, still sleeping, dear." Brandy told him, and beckoned him from the kitchen, "She has a fever, so she'll be out for awhile. Come over and have some breakfast."

He hesitated, but in the end, his stomach won out. Sliding into a chair at the table, he thanked her as she placed a plate of bacon and eggs in front of him.

"I already called Eliza for you, so she doesn't worry. And Nick is loading your bike in his truck; he'll take you both home when he goes to work." She informed him, and Matt nodded. A sneeze snuck up on him, and Brandy furrowed her brows, brushing away his bangs to feel his forehead, "Did you catch a cold, too? I'll get you some medicine… you're not allergic to anything, right?"

He was a little in awe, having not been on the receiving end of such tender care too often. After a moment, he nodded, and a glass of orange juice and a pair of red pills appeared before him.

He thanked her again and swallowed the pills before digging into breakfast. Brandy went back into her bedroom, and emerged a few moments later in a waitress get up.

"Is that enough food for you, Matt? I can make more." She asked him as she checked her hair in a mirror.

"Huh? No, I'm good. Thanks." He replied, watching her curiously as he munched on the last strip of bacon.

"OK, I have to go to work, now. There's some soup in the fridge; just put it in a bowl and warm it up for Aurora when she wakes up. Nick will probably be around here, but if you need something and you can't find him, my cell phone number is on the fridge. And Nick brought over his Playstation and some games he thought you'd like, so you won't get bored." She paused, hand on the doorknob, turning back to smile at him, "OK?"

He nodded and though he felt like a broken record, he thanked her again.

She just laughed lightly, "It's no problem, Matt; you don't have to keep thanking me. Now, I have to head out; you'll be all right by yourselves?"

He nodded again, and she smiled before disappearing out the door.

Matt inspected the door thoughtfully, and finally came to the conclusion that if Brandy ever had kids, they would be the luckiest children alive. Turning back to his now empty plate and glass, he took them over to the sink and washed them dutifully, leaving them in the drying rack before he went to check on Aurora.

She had kicked off the blankets and was lying in the center of the bed, sleeping fitfully. She murmured something in her sleep, and her fingers clenched into the sheets as she tossed her head. Matt watched her for a moment, considering, before he stepped up to the bed and tossed the sheet over her again, tucking it up under her chin. His fingers brushed her forehead, and he thought briefly of how Roger would lay a wet cloth over his forehead when he was sick, back at Whammy's. Deciding that it sounded like a good idea, he went to raid the kitchen cupboards for a cloth and a bowl. By the time he'd returned, she about tossed the blanket off again, and he set the items down to replace the blanket before bringing the damp cloth to her face, wiping sweat from her cheeks before laying it across her forehead. She sighed a little and licked a few droplets of water from her lips, murmuring his name quietly.

He blinked at her, "Are you awake?"

She didn't respond. After a moment, he shifted and lay down beside her, under the blanket. She clung to him.

* * *

Matt wasn't sure how long he'd been sleeping, but it seemed like he'd just lay down when a hand gripped his shoulder and shook him a little. A voice that he didn't recognize right away told him to get up, it's time to go. He blinked blearily up at Nick.

"Get up, kid. I'm taking you two home now." The older male repeated.

Matt blinked a few times, "Huh? Uh… okay."

Nick sighed and rolled his eyes, backing up so that Matt could extract himself from the tangle of sheets and stretch. Once he was about to stand, his own clothes, clean and neatly folded, landed in his lap and Nick left the room, shutting the door behind him. Matt shook his head a little and got to changing out of the too-big clothes and into his own. Aurora slept on, and he vaguely hoped they wouldn't have to wake her. Awhile later, there came a knock on the door, and Matt opened it, brushing his fingers through his short hair and deciding that he needed a shower when he got home. Nick glanced him over before pointing out his goggles, setting neatly atop Aurora's folded clothing on the coffee table.

Once Matt had strapped on his goggles and gathered up the girl's clothes, he turned back to Nick, standing patiently near the door with Aurora -- blanket and all -- gathered up in his arms, "Wanna get the door, kid?"

The boy moved past him, sliding his shoes on and pulling open the door, locking it behind him, and they headed out to a big red truck -- Matt recognized it as a Dodge, because Aurora had shown him a picture once, telling him that she wished she could buy one. The Harley stood upright in the back, held in place by a variety of straps wrapping around anything that wouldn't fall off. Once Matt had climbed up into the cab, Nick set Aurora on the seat beside him before shutting the door and getting in behind the wheel.

The older male lit up a cigarette and rolled down the window before putting the truck into drive and pulling out of the parking space, "So where d'ya live, kid?"

Matt gave him directions, and he rather desperately wanted a cigarette of his own, but Aurora was leaning on him, blocking access to his pocket where he kept them. Nick glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, considering, "How old are you?"

Matt jumped, startled by the seemingly random question, "I'm…. fifteen."

The driver huffed a little, stamping out his half-finished cigarette in the ashtray, "Fifteen, huh? How long you been smoking?"

"How did you…?"

Nick held up Matt's cigarettes between two fingers, "Found 'em in your pockets. It's a nasty habit, kid, and it doesn't get the girls… no matter what the boys tell ya."

Matt nodded a little, taking the packet of cigarettes and feeling like a scolded child.

When the truck pulled up in the driveway to their house, Nick leaned across his passengers to pull something out of the glovebox before handing it to Matt, "Here, something to help ya kick the habit."

The boy fingered the crushed cardboard box thoughtfully as his hair was ruffled. Nicotine patches…

When Nick carried Aurora into the house, Eliza directed him to lay her on the couch, and Nick did so before bidding them farewell and leaving.


	22. Chapter Nineteen Point Five

Title: Candy Kisses Chapter Nineteen-Point-Five

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter Nineteen-Point-Five**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **angst galore**  
Summary:**_ She wanted to push the pair together and tell them to get to it already; she wanted to pull them apart and beg Matt to give up; she wanted to beat some sense into both of them.  
_**Note: **Oh yes, folks, a country song. When I wrote this chapter (for my friends) I got a lot of complaints about it being a country song. But I'm a country fan, and I thought it was a good song for the mood I wanted to set, so it stays. I suggest you listen to it, even if you don't really like country, because it's not bad and really does set the tone. _  
_

**Candy Kisses**

lyrics: "Punishment" by SheDaisy

**Chapter Nineteen-Point-Five**

"**Eliza-Point-Five"**

_I thought that was supposed to feel good  
And if you were really mine  
I guess it would  
I didn't fall in love  
'Cause it was the right thing to do  
I just went ahead and fell for you  
_

Eliza dispassionately stirred the soup as Aurora's radio played in the background. It had been too quiet in the house without her two housemates, and now it was too quiet with the two of them all but passed out on the couch; Eliza had taken to having the radio running when she was around the house.

Those two idiots couldn't keep still until they'd worn themselves into the dirt; as soon as Aurora had awoken from her fever-induced stupor, what did she do? She went outside to tinker with her car. And Matt was sick, too, though he was loathe to admit it. But he still went to work (_'Because Aurora can't.'_) and still took Dawn for walks and still played on his computer until late into the night.

Where did that leave Eliza? All she could really do was watch after them when they did finally lose out to their exhaustion.

_Oh, somewhere down along the line  
I guess that love became a crime  
This contradiction makes no sense  
This is punishment  
I feel like this is judgment day  
I'll raise my hand stand up and say  
I don't believe I'm innocent  
This is punishment  
_

She was trying to move on, because it was glaringly obvious that Matt wasn't going to set his sights anywhere but on Aurora. And Aurora wasn't going to set her sights anywhere at all; or if she did, she wouldn't go any further than looking. And this unnervingly _stupid_ game of 'look, but don't touch' was driving Eliza insane; she wanted to push the pair together and tell them to get to it already; she wanted to pull them apart and beg Matt to give up; she wanted to beat some sense into both of them.

_Truth is your heart was never mine to take  
Now I'm stuck in a feeling  
That I'll never shake  
I prayed for it to go  
God knows I want it to stay  
But here I am loving you either way  
_

But the truth was, she couldn't carry out any of it. She was frightened… absolutely _scared to death_ that if she pushed even a little, in any direction, that she'd lose one or both of them forever. The only two people left that she could really connect with. The people that she knew next to nothing about, but cared about none-the-less.

The thought of losing them paralyzed her, made her lungs feel constricted and her heart race. And she'd do anything, _anything_ for them to stay with her forever.

Even if Matt never loved her.

Even if Aurora never loved anyone.

A/N: W00t! Not only another "Point-Five" chapter, but 30 reviews as well! I feel loved... So this particular "Point-Five" chapter is dedicated to everyone who has reviewed so far... spinningvortex, rukia23, and Mellolicious! Thanks everyone!  
Also, thanks to those who have just been reading... please review, even just once so I can properly thank you! (Don't worry, I don't bite... much. wink)

A/N v2: Just a heads up: These updates have been (for the most part) quick simply because I already had them written ahead of time. Chapter 21 is still being written, and the preceding Chapter 20 probably won't be released until 21 is done. I mention this because I'm currently bogged down with a -still- broken computer as well as schoolwork and an ongoing writers' block, so updates are likely to slow down at this point. I still much appreciate reviews, however, and if anyone is interesting in seeing another "point-five" chapter, then please say so, and maybe give me ideas for one, if you have any!

Thanks for reading so far!


	23. Chapter Twenty

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter Twenty**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist. And the lyrics used are from "Here (In Your Arms)" by HelloGoodbye.

**Warnings: **childish pranks, childish fighting, Lara Croft/Devil May Cry bashing, kissing, V-day bashing, cussing… Is that it? I think that's it.**  
Summary:** Following a random filler that wasn't even going to be in the story originally, Matt and Aurora head out to a bar for some Valentine's Day lunch.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Twenty**

Eliza blinked slowly at the kitchen countertop, where a small cardboard box lay partially hidden among various sandwich ingredients. A soft sigh, and she pocketed the box, heading towards the living room where she found Matt just sitting down on the couch, sandwich in hand, and Aurora skulking about in a fashion that could only be described as _suspicious_.

Matt brought his sandwich to his mouth, and Eliza immediately called his name, loud enough to make both teens jump in surprise. He jerked his head around to stare at her as she strode across the living room toward him with long, determined strides.

"Geez, does everything have to be an emergency with you girls?! What's wrong _now_?!" he asked.

Eliza calmly plucked his sandwich out of his hand and, avoiding his attempt to reclaim the stolen food, peeled back the top piece of bread and picked something out of the folds of thinly-sliced ham and turkey. Matt was still trying to take back his food, and she handed him the object she'd retrieved instead, standing patiently before him as he paused.

Staring blankly at the sandwich stowaway in his hand, Matt took a moment to poke it with his index finger, rolling it over, before realization dawned on his face and his eyebrows rose in surprise, "…There is Viagra in my sandwich."

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Eliza, tired of standing around holding his sandwich, set it unceremoniously on top of his head and walked away without affording a glance toward the other girl, who just stared moodily at her from across the room and muttered something unkind.

A grin finally spread across the boy's face as he relegated his meal to the table and held up the small blue pill for all to see, "You know, Aurora, if you wanted some action, all you had to do was ask."

Aurora made a face at him, "I want you off the PS2. You've been playing that stupid Tomb Raider game for hours now."

"Why? Are you jealous?" he grinned crookedly at her over the back of the couch, "I'd understand. After all, Lara Croft is _such_ a babe and all."

Aurora huffed and crossed her arms, "No! I wanna play Devil May Cry 2!"

Matt took up his sandwich again, waving it in the air as if to prove some point, "Nu-uh! There's no way some whiny old man demon and his stupid twin are getting in between Lara and me!"

"Oh, puh-_leeze_! Dante is _so_ much cooler than _Lara_!" she finally stalked over to the couch, rolling her eyes at him.

"What's so cool about him? I mean, he's a _demon_, for one, and all he does is jump around and crack bad jokes and swing around that stupid sword. You know what _I_ think? I think he's compensating for something with that huge sword!" He nodded to himself, taking a bite out of the sandwich finally.

"Whatever. He's got a hot bod." She slunk up to the back of the couch while he was eating, paused, then dove for the controller.

Matt's hand shot out and grabbed the controller first, but Aurora managed to get her hands on the wire as it slid past her fingers. They froze there, glaring at eachother over the sandwich still stuck in the boy's mouth.

"I'll pull the cord out." She threatened.

Matt tried to mumble something around the sandwich, paused to consider his predicament, and finally just bit off what was in his mouth, letting the rest fall onto the couch. Barely chewing, he swallowed and started again, "You'll pull the console off the shelf."

Aurora shrugged lazily, "Then I guess it's a good thing I have my own, isn't it?"

"You wouldn't dare…"

She tugged on the wire, making the PS2 slide forward until it started to hang off the shelf. Matt automatically released the controller and dove for the console. Aurora laughed lightly as, in his dive to rescue the console, he restarted the Playstation accidentally. He cursed loudly.

"Would you two grow up?" Eliza called in exasperation as she passed through the room.

Aurora looked up, her witty comeback dying on her lips. She blinked, pausing to rub her eyes, and finally proclaimed, "…you look gorgeous."

The dark-haired girl blushed lightly, glancing back as Matt climbed on the couch again to look for himself, peering over the back of it. Smoothing her fingers over the silken fabric at her hip, she shyly asked, "Do you really think so? It's not overdone?"

"Nu-uh. It looks really good on you." Matt agreed, resting his chin on his crossed forearms, and Eliza blushed hotly, turning her face away a little to hide the smile.

"Where are you going?" Aurora piped up, then glanced over the other girl's medium blue dress and neatly plaited hair, "…A date?"

Matt glanced to Aurora, blinked, then turned back to Eliza without saying a word.

Eliza couldn't bring herself to face them as she replied with, "Yeah, there's this guy in one of my classes… Levi Alden. He asked me out yesterday, to go to this dance, and, well, I couldn't see any reason to turn him down. 'Cause he's a nice guy, and he's kinda cute, too. And, anyway, we're just going to this dance, and some of my friends are taking their boyfriends, too, so it should be fun…" her voice faded off, and she dared to turn and catch her friend's reactions.

There was a pause, and then Matt asked rather seriously, "Is he picking you up?"

Both girls looked at him a little strangely, and Eliza nodded in the affirmative. Matt grinned ruefully, "Then you'll hafta introduce us."

"Why?" Aurora dared to ask him.

Matt turned to her, looking as if he were stating the obvious when he replied with, "Because we have to make sure he's not one of those guys that acts nice, but is really an asshole. You weren't really gonna let her go off with some guy we don't even know, were you?"

The red-haired girl's eyebrow twitched, and she said dryly, "Speaking of assholes…"

"What?" he frowned.

"You treat her like a child! Don't you trust Eliza's judgment _at all_?"

Eliza couldn't help it; she giggled a little. She _was_ rather touched by their concern over her welfare, "OK, Matt, I'll introduce him to you."

As if on cue, someone knocked on the front door. Eliza glanced at the clock in surprise, before asking quickly, "How do I look? Do I look okay?"

Aurora gave her two thumbs up and a huge grin, and Matt informed her that she looked awesome. Eliza decided that that was the best she'd get from the two gamers and rushed to answer the door.

Matt and Aurora remained on the couch, silent, until finally Eliza led in her date. He didn't look outstandingly handsome, nor did he look all that plain. His build was athletic, like maybe he was a runner or something. He had chocolate brown hair in a medium, boyish cut, a few loose bangs falling over his green eyes.

He brushed back his bangs and smiled pleasantly, if not a little awkwardly, "Hey. I'm Levi." Laughing a little nervously, he turned to Eliza and joked, "It's almost like I'm meeting your parents…"

Aurora pushed herself off the couch, moving a bit closer and smiling softly, "Hi. I'm Aurora… It's nice to meet you."

Matt came up behind her, quiet, and Levi spoke up, "You're Matt, I take it?" he laughed a little, "Don't worry, I'll keep Eliza safe."

Eliza laughed a little and, glancing up at the clock, pushed at Levi's shoulder, "Come on, we're supposed to meet everyone at six. We have to get going. Bye Matt, Aurora! I won't be home until late, so you're on your own for supper!"

Once the couple was out the door, Aurora laughed and elbowed Matt in the ribs, "You act like the jealous ex-boyfriend. Or her dad." She sobered, looking thoughtful before amending, "Or possibly an over-protective girlfriend. Are you Eliza's girlfriend, Matt?"

He punched her shoulder, "Just shut up already. I get it."

Aurora laughed a little, and suddenly turned to study him, a grin slowly spreading on her face.

Matt frowned, suspicious of her sudden change in attitude "…What?"

"Oh… nothing special." She leaned closer to him, smiling sweetly, "…But I won."

"You won…?" he inched backwards.

"Why… the Playstation, of course."

Realization struck, and Matt's eyes shone, "No way! Not if I get to it first!"

He was just about to bolt for the couch, but her hand on his chest stopped him. He rose an eyebrow and was about to comment, but she pushed him backwards with a strength he didn't realize she harbored. Surprised, he stumbled a few steps before hitting the wall, and even before he could utter a syllable, her lips were on his.

And then, as suddenly as the kiss had begun, it had ended, and Aurora had bolted across the room, vaulted over the back of the couch, and was starting up her game before Matt came fully to his senses.

"That was a cheap trick!"

"You liked it." She stuck her tongue out at him and slumped onto the couch, eyes fixating on the opening scenes of her game.

_February 14, 2007_

Aurora made a noise of disgust and threw the TV remote across the room.

Matt raised an eyebrow as he entered the living room, watching her curse and get up to go after the abused buttons. Lying out on the couch to play his gameboy, he asked, "What was that about?"

"Valentine's Day is the stupidest holiday in the history of all holidays!" she informed him, and paused to stare down at him, "And you're in my spot."

"And why did the remote deserve a high-speed impact with the wall because of it?" he tilted his head and shoulders up enough that she could sit, and when she did, he only rested his head on her thigh.

She sighed faintly in annoyance -- though whether it was directed at him or the chocolate commercial on TV -- and absently brushed his hair as she flipped through the channels, "Where's Eliza at anyways?"

"I think her and Levi went out."

She made a soft noise before falling quiet. For awhile, the only noises that filled the house were the TV and Matt's gameboy.

And when his pixilated character died a bloody death, he spoke up, "Hey, wanna go out to eat?"

"I'm broke." Her fingers continued to idly play with his hair. He loathed doing anything to have them removed.

"I'm buying." He grinned up at her, "Consider it a Valentine's date."

She made a face and pulled his hair, "I'll consider it a birthday present." She stood, nearly knocking him off the couch.

From his precarious perch on the edge of the couch, he echoed, "Birthday present?"

"Yeah. Today's my birthday." She replied absently. As if discussing the weather.

Matt took a moment to think this over, and finally burst out laughing, "You're probably the most un-romantic girl in Los Angeles, and your birthday is on Valentine's?"

Aurora flipped him off.

Aurora didn't bother to comment upon the fact that she was being treated to lunch at some no-name bar on Valentine's day, or her birthday, or whatever. Matt didn't really expect her to; it was one of the things he liked about her. She couldn't even pretend to be 'high-maintenance.' He'd heard a few horror stories from his buddies about girls that took hours to get ready and demanded candlelit dinners and anniversary celebrations and such; he'd even dated a prima donna once, just for fun. That had lasted a whole of one week. Of course, not too many of his relationships lasted; most of them left when they found out that he was living with two girls. The rest left when it became apparent that they were only distractions from a one-sided childhood love.

Aurora was looking out the passenger side window -- since Matt had gotten his license, it was hard to keep him away from the steering wheel, so he usually did the driving -- singing along with the radio.

"_I like where we are,_

_When we drive, in your car_

_I like where we are... Here_

_Cause our lips, can touch_

_And our cheeks, can brush_

_Our lips can touch here"_

One of those love songs. God must love irony.

Aurora's singing stopped and she asked, "You don't like this song?"

Surprised, he glanced at her. She stared back, expression neutral. He just looked back at the road, "No, it's fine. I don't care."

She reached out and changed the station anyway.

Just as they pulled into the lot outside the bar, a sleek black car pulled in alongside them. Matt eyed it, recognizing it as a Ford Mustang. He wasn't too sure on the year. They both stepped out, Aurora taking the long way around their vehicle in order to leisurely inspect the black car. Matt felt vaguely jealous; she was practically drooling.

And then the back door opened on the side opposite them, and a familiar blonde slid out, "Hello Matt, Aurora."

"Mello!" Matt grinned, jealousy forgotten, "What are you doing here?"

"Just came for some drinks." The blonde replied leisurely and, stroking a hand over the roof of his car, asked Aurora, "You like it? It's the latest make."

Aurora turned away, "Pft. It's small fry to my Viper."

Mello chuckled and turned his attention back on Matt, "Well, shall we go inside, then?"

Matt glanced from Mello, over to Aurora, back to Mello, then up at the ceiling before sighing and leaning back, "Well, aren't you two just the best of pals…?"

Aurora pushed away from the table with a scowl directed at the blonde, even as she spoke to Matt, "This guy pisses me off. I'm gotta watch the races up at the bar."

Mello looked pleased, and his expression made her pause, but she eventually just flipped him off and stalked away with a muttered, "Girly twat."

The blonde looked like he was going to get up and throw a few punches, but Matt intercepted, "You planned this, didn't you?"

"What?"

"Coming here and chasing her off." Matt watched a scantily clad girl bend over the pool table at the other end of the room for a moment, then turned beck to Mello, "I'm not stupid. Why else would you just happen to show up at this bar?"

His companion stared for a minute, then flipped his hair, "So what? I wanted to piss her off."

Matt exhaled and leaned his forearms on the table, making it rock a little under his weight, "…Whatever. I don't even get why you two fight anymore."

Mello didn't reply, just waved down a waitress and ordered a couple of drinks. Alcoholic ones, Matt noticed absently.

Over at the bar, Aurora sighed faintly and accepted her non-alcoholic margarita from the bartender, commenting as a lanky man slid into the bar stool beside her, "I'm not interested."

Maybe he hadn't heard her, or maybe he didn't care. He ordered his own drink before asking, "So what's a girl like you doing alone on Valentine's day?"

"So what's a man like you doing outside jail?" she snapped back, "I said, I'm not interested. Back off."

He raised his hands, grinning, "Oh, bad mood. You get dumped?"

Deciding that he wasn't going to leave, she considered moving, eying another stool further down the bar, "….Yeah, sure."

"What kinda guy would dump a girl today of all days?" he asked, incredulous. He looped an arm around her shoulders, "Hey, wanna go catch a movie with me? That guy wasn't worth it."

She stiffened, clenching her teeth, and ground out, "No. Leave me alone."

When his arm didn't move, she stepped down from the barstool and walked away, leaving her drink on the counter and heading for the restrooms without bothering to excuse herself.

A/N: Yes, isn't Matt just the most amazing little charmer? Drive your girl out to the nearest bar and hang out with her mortal enemy; that'll make for a great relationship.  
…Personally, I don't think I'd mind, so long as I got to ride in the Dodge Viper. -lulz- (Bars in my area have a reputation for good food, anyway. haha)

This was actually written around Valentine's day '08 (shows how slow I am at posting)… but I held it back because I wanted to change some stuff (namely, that strange filler thingy. There really is no purpose for that other than to show that Eliza is getting out and about and… Yeah, filler. :p )

And for those curious, there will probably only be another two chapters. (Possibly three, if I decide I want another "-point-five" chapter, which I kinda wanna write for Matt.) And then... I'll probably move onto another fic. Maybe Death Note again, since it's still one of my favorite series. We'll see.


	24. Chapter Twenty One

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter Twenty-One**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **fighting, cussing, sexual stuff, strip-tease music, innuendo, man-to-man talks, girl talks, and undue suspense… all rolled into one newspaper-wrapped package!

**Summary:** Matt and Aurora's return from the bar -- and the morning after -- lead to much more than either could have thought a birthday/V-day lunch could lead to.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Twenty-One**

Mello left, a few men that were probably from his gang going with him, and Matt glanced around the bar in search of Aurora before deciding that she'd probably gone to the bathroom or something. He threw back the rest of his drink and headed for the little hallway that led to the latrines, figuring she'd be out by the time he was back.

The little hallway was like some kind of secluded room, an alleyway, really, and couldn't be seen from the rest of the bar. When Matt turned into it, he heard the soft, muted sounds before he fully registered the sight in the hallway.

Some tall, sinewy man had Aurora pressed into the wall, one of his hands pinning her wrists above her head. His mouth was firmly planted on hers, hips grinding against her. She jerked and struggled and kept her eyes firmly shut, trying to push him off and get away at the same time.

Matt didn't even stop to think. He charged in and threw a wild punch at the girl's attacker, hoping more to distract him long enough for her to get away because he knew there was probably little hope in fighting the man alone. To get his point across, he shouted, "Get your hands off her!"

The man jerked his head around to glare at Matt, not releasing Aurora even as she struggled more fiercely, fighting between shouting and gasping for breath.

"Piss off, squirt! I'm busy!"

"Matt! Go home, I can take care of myself!" the girl snapped. Her expression didn't back up her words.

Matt stared at her incredulously, "Like fuck I will!"

"You'd do good to listen to your little bitch, brat." Hunching over his prize, the man scowled in annoyance at Matt, who only rushed in for another punch. Aurora made some sort of aggravated noise and threw her weight about, managing to knock her attacker's shin with enough force that he backed off a little. Matt's blow landed in the side of his face, and the man released her hands in a failed attempt to block. She sent a vague frown in Matt's direction before directing a kick at the man's kneecap that made him stumble.

"Come on, Aurora, let's get--" Matt turned to drag her away, only to be punched in the face as he turned. Aurora kicked again, smashing her foot into the man's groin and then shoving his face against her kneecap as he doubled over in pain. Glancing at Matt's ever-so-slight grimace, she turned and stalked away from him. He swiftly kicked the crumpled man in the ribs and went after her.

She'd beat him back to the car and settled herself in the passenger-side seat, arms crossed and head resting against the cold glass window. He slid in behind the wheel, glancing in the rearview mirror to grimace at the soon-to-be bruise on his cheek before looking over at her. He hadn't really gotten a chance to see if she'd been injured.

"Are you okay?"

"I didn't need your help."

He stared at the back of her head, "Really? So you had everything under control?"

"Yeah, I did."

"I don't believe you."

She hunched her shoulders and turned further away from him, not replying.

"So tell me, what exactly was this master plan you had?" he sneered, frustrated and annoyed now.

She shivered, her fingers curling around her shoulders, and she whispered, "…Matt, I want to go home now."

He dug the keys out of his pocket and put them in the ignition, but didn't turn the car on just yet. "What were you going to do, Aurora? Just let him… fuck you and hope he goes away?" There was derision and something else in his voice.

She still kept her face turned away, her knuckles turning white with the pressure she put on her slight shoulders, and she only said softly, begged, "Matt… I want to go home. Just take me home. I don't want to talk about it, okay?"

He finally turned the car on and pulled out of the parking lot, deathly silent.

* * *

Matt expected her to go lock herself in her room as soon as they got home. He hadn't really meant to snap at her, but she was being stupid and childish, and it had been getting harder and harder to control his temper with her lately. Eliza said it was because he was repressing too much lately. Levi told him it was because he needed to get laid.

Aurora, for whatever reason, didn't retreat to her room right away. She took a half-hour shower, and changed, and then stood in the entry way of the living room, looking entirely too small and frail in the over-sized sweatshirt and pajama pants she was wearing. Matt, stretched out on the couch and watching television, didn't outwardly respond to her presence, assuming that if she wanted something, she'd say so.

Finally, after a long, uncomfortable silence, he turned to look at her and asked tiredly, "What?"

She flinched, "I just… I…" The girl glanced away from him, uncertain, and her fingers came up to rub nervously at her lips. Finally she strode across the floor toward him, hesitated, and leaned in to kiss him.

Startled, he didn't respond, not sure what to make of the suddenness of this. She made a tiny distressed noise and redoubled her efforts; he looped his arms around her neck and pulled her down on top of him. She shifted, reaching up to pull his goggles off and toss them aside. Matt didn't really notice, burying one hand in her hair and sliding the other beneath her shirt and against her back. She didn't protest. One of her hands slid down his side, found its way to his belt buckle, and hesitated there before moving under his shirt to brush against his abs.

Their lips parted, breath coming in soft pants, and Aurora spoke in a bare whisper, "Matt, do you… do you want me?"

His fingers tightened on her skin, mouth releasing her neck long enough to breath, "Yes… gods, yes." And then he registered the question and pulled back to study her questioningly.

She stood, turning to pull him up, "Come on… the couch is too small."

"Aurora…" he got up to follow her, uncertain now, "Are you serious?"

"Yeah, I… I need you to. Now, before I think about it." She didn't look at him, just paced into her room and shoved a pile of books off her bed. Stripping off her shirt, she finally looked back at him, expression soft, "…It's okay, right? I… I can't ask anyone else…"

He studied her, watching her fingers hesitate at the hem of her pajama pants, before he finally kicked the door shut and locked it, striding forward and embracing her fiercely. She froze, probably not sure what to make of his action, until he pushed her back a few steps onto the bed and moved over her.

Aurora made a faint noise and wrapped her arms around him.

* * *

Eliza looked up as Aurora's bedroom door creaked open, and the girl watched in silence as her female house-mate emerged, hair mussed up and wearing nothing but one of Matt's striped shirts that reached her thighs and left most of her collarbone and shoulders uncovered as compensation. Eliza's eyebrows rose just a little at the red mark decorating her friend's neck. Her eyebrows rose more when Matt -- decked out in boxers -- came out of the same room, curled his arms around Aurora, and nudged her face around for a kiss. And when Matt's hand reached around Aurora's hips and pulled the girl against him, Eliza couldn't resist; she started loudly humming a strip tease song, and Levi laughingly joined in.

The otherwise occupied pair froze, eyes darting to stare at the grinning faces that peered over the back of the couch.

"Wh-When did you two get here?!" Aurora squeaked, hurriedly brushing Matt's hand away from her crotch and pulling the shirt back down. Matt blushed an interesting shade of red and didn't say anything.

"Just a bit ago." Levi replied languidly, "We came back to make sure you kids hadn't gotten into any trouble."

Eliza's eyes had a mischievous gleam in them, "But it seems we didn't need to worry."

"B-Bastard," Aurora snapped before retreating into her room again with Matt close behind. The other pair's laughter followed them.

* * *

"Hey, Matt."

The gamer lifted his head from his game, a cigarette hanging from his lips.

"Bet I can kick your ass in Gran Turismo." Levi grinned lazily at the younger boy, leaning on the doorframe to Matt's room. The girl's were out, and Levi had been left to his own devices around the house.

A cocky smirk greeted the challenge, "What do I get when I win?"

Levi's eyebrow twitched, his grin slipping, "You brat… get your ass out here."

Matt shut off his game and dropped the system on his bed, getting up to head for the living room even as he said, "You're really transparent, Levi, do you know that? Why don't you just come out and tell me what Eliza is making you ask me?"

The younger boy didn't have to turn around to imagine the flush on the other's face. He laughed at the silence behind him and made a detour through the kitchen, grabbing a dog biscuit and a bag of chips. Dawn perked up and trotted up to him from her post at the end of the couch.

"Eliza isn't making me ask you anything, brat." Levi finally replied, crouching in front of the Playstation 2 and starting up the game.

Matt gave Dawn a brief lesson on balancing her treat on her nose, chuckling quietly when the dog went cross-eyed, "OK, fine. What brought on the sudden urge to play Gran Turismo, then? Just wanted to stroke my ego?"

"Oh, trust me… your ego needs no stroking. _Pounding, _maybe, but not stroking." Levi muttered under his breath.

Matt laughed.

"Because in case you failed to notice, there are people outside of these little plastic boxes, and most of them like to socialize with other people at some point in their lives." He swept an arm across the expanse of the living room, nearly knocking it into the TV, "The girls are gone, and the only way to get conversation out of you is during a game. Hence, Gran Turismo."

Matt stared at him for awhile in silence, and finally he looked somewhere between disgusted and confused, "Are you my girlfriend now? Why do you feel this need to 'talk?'"

Levi smacked his palm to his forehead and pointed at the couch, "Just forget it. Get over here and sit your ass down, brat."

Sulking, Matt slunk over to the couch and took a spot at one end, ripping open his bag of chips. Raising a chip to his mouth, he muttered, "…My name's not 'brat.'"

"Brat." Levi accentuated the word as he dropped a controller in the other boy's lap and took his spot at the other end of the couch, Dawn taking up the space between them.

Outside of the boys' game-related smack-talk, they didn't talk through the first several rounds. And then Levi, upon losing, leaned back in his seat and asked leisurely, "So, kid, wanna tall me what's going on?"

Matt glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, frowning as he replied sarcastically, "We're playing Gran Turismo. You forgot?"

Levi snorted in amusement, "You're smarter than that, kid."

"I am. But I don't understand how what's going on between Aurora and I is any of your business."

For the moment, the game was left forgotten as the older male looked up at the ceiling, wincing just a little, "…Look, Matt, we know that you two were hanging out at the bar yesterday. We saw your car there."

"So what? We eat out at the bar a lot." Matt replied blandly.

"That's not my point. What I mean is… Well, Eliza and I've been to that bar. They don't worry about selling alcohol to minors…"

"You think we were drinking."

Levi glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, "I'm just making sure you two aren't doing things that you're going to regret later."

The younger boy scowled at him, "We weren't drunk, you bastard. And we didn't do anything you or Eliza need to know about. So why don't you butt out?" Standing, Matt tossed the controller on the couch and left the room without finishing the game.

* * *

As if the seemingly spontaneous hook-up hadn't surprised Eliza enough, the following weeks of watching Aurora and Matt's already unconventional relationship -- if it could even be called that -- deteriorate into nothingness was proving enough to drive her over the brink. She'd heard of couples having fallouts after sleeping together, but that was different! This was Aurora and Matt!

Matt went out with some nondescript girl a week later, and Aurora went about her life as if Matt was no longer part of it. All in all, the two hardly glanced at each other.

Eliza decided something needed to be done.

"Aurora, where are you going?"

The redhaired girl stopped in the doorway, the mouth of her bottled water against her lips, "I'm… going outside. Is that okay?"

"It's not. Get back in here."

Aurora raised an eyebrow and waved her water bottle in the direction of the driveway, "Can it wait? I already pulled half the bike apart… Matt'll throw a shit-fit if he comes back and he can't park his car."

"Tough." Eliza moved to the other girl and pulled her inside, "This won't take long as long as you cooperate."

"…'cooperate'? I don't like that word."

Eliza maneuvered her to the couch and pushed her down, "Now, tell me what's going on with Matt."

"Whaaaat?" Aurora whined, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, what happened?! Why did you break up?!"

"Break up…?" Aurora made a face, "Doesn't that require us to be dating at some point?"

"You _know_ what I mean! You two hardly even talk, and Matt's always going out with that one girl!"

"Eliza, if you'd pay attention, you'd know that 'that one girl' is named 'Lisa' and we work with her. They put Matt and her and some other people on some big project outside the building, and they carpool there."

The black-haired girl paused.

"And how do you know what Matt and I do? You're not around 24/7."

Eliza frowned, "…Fine. But, still, did something weird happen? I mean, most the couples I've seen at least change a little after they sleep together. That's why I thought you broke up, or whatever you wanna call it."

Aurora's face turned red and she turned away quickly, letting her hair shield her expression, "This is, well… That's cause… nothing really… We… didn't do anything."

"You… huh?" The younger girl looked dumbfounded, "But… you two were all over eachother! And... and both of you were practically naked!"

The redhaired girl dipped her head a little, hunching her shoulders and mumbling, "…I got scared."

"O-oh…" For a moment, Eliza looked like she wasn't sure what to do, and then she came over and sat by her friend. Cautiously, she lay an arm over the other girl's shoulders and asked, "First time?"

"…No. And I don't want to talk about it." That said, the older girl shook her off and headed outside.

* * *

A/N: And that's chapter 21 for ya, folks! You now may understand why it amused me that the reviews I got all mentioned Aurora's unattended drink… that I didn't really think about when writing. Seriously, it was only for effect. Heh

Anyway, I have a special announcement! Mellolicious has drawn fan art for _Candy Kisses_, and even gave me permission to let everyone know about it! cheers Its here, so you should go take a look! (take out the spaces in the URL, though. It's the only way I could get to accept it.)  
http: / / troublesomecloud . deviantart . com/art/Candy-Kisses-Aurora-82384532

(If the link isn't working correctly, then go to Deviant and search "Candy Kisses Aurora"; the username is TroubleSomeCloud)  
I command you to go check it out! Right now! And then you should come back and praise her. Yup, yup.

Also, I lied last chapter; NOW there are three more chapters. And one of them is extra-special, too (or maybe two of them? Depends on your definition of "extra-special", I suppose.)


	25. Chapter Twenty One Point Five

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter (Twenty-One-Point-Five)**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **minor cussing… a rather tame chapter.

**Summary:** Aurora was the one, glaring exception, and once in awhile he considered the meaning of it, but he never really got anywhere before he gave up -- because, really, what did it matter? It didn't, and so there wasn't any reason to think about it.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Twenty-One-Point-Five**

"**Matt-Point-Five"**

Matt watched, outwardly impassionate, as Aurora tore down the dirt track on the borrowed motor bike, maneuvering around the bend at the far end with all the finesse of an experienced beginner. Nick shouted something from the pit; Matt wasn't paying attention.

And then the small, plastic-looking bike went aerial, and the red-haired boy witnessed Aurora's best motorcycle-trick: ungraceful flight followed by a hard landing. At the very least, she managed to land on the wheels.

Nick groaned and the motorcycle wobbled dangerously before skidding to a halt on its side. The cloud of dirt stood out like the smoke bomb signals they used in war movies. Now if only the dust were some obnoxious color, like pink or something.

"What the hell's wrong with you?!" Nick was raging as he leaped the track fence and headed for the crash site. Matt followed, hands in pockets and itching for a cigarette; Nick said he couldn't smoke, because of the gas fumes or something.

Aurora picked herself out from under the motorcycle and turned inspect the bike as she pulled off the helmet. Her hair cascaded down her back in a tangled mess -- nothing like the beautiful, always smooth and shiny locks of the babes on T.V.

"I thought I could make it." She commented offhandedly.

"Are you aware that you couldn't afford this motorcycle?" Nick scolded as he ran his fingers over a crack in the red plastic. He made a face, as if she'd dented his first-born.

"You said I could ride it."

"I said you could _ride_ her." He repeated, firmly, then added, "Not break her."

"Her?"

"The bike." He answered, righting the bike and checking it over. He winced at each dent, scratch, and break.

"'It.' A bike is an object, not living, therefore unsexed and not 'her.'"

Matt threw in his two cents, "Motorized things need a lot of maintenance, so they're called 'her.'"

She stared at him blankly for a moment, then turned back to Nick, "Hey Nick, is 'she' gonna make it, or should we call an ambulance?"

"Maybe you should suck-start it." Matt suggested, and she chucked the helmet at his face.

Nick waved off the joking, "Aurora, I'll only let you ride if you promise not to try things you don't know how to do. You'll hurt yourself, one of these times."

She scratched the side of her neck, "Don't you mean I'll hurt the bike?"

"Yeah, that's what I mean. But it's more polite if I pretend I'm concerned about you."

"Oh, gee, well thanks." She rolled her eyes.

"Can I ride it?" Matt asked, butting in.

Nick glanced from the girl to him and nodded, "Come here and I'll show you the controls."

* * *

Aurora wasn't dainty, or frail, or even all that voluptuous. She owned two pairs of shoes, didn't have closets upon closets of clothes, and didn't inquire about the real or imagined size of her butt (though Matt wouldn't mind an excuse to ogle her butt.) She was daring and wild and cussed without a care. She was the epitome of anti-female.

And yet, there was some element about her that just drew him.

Maybe some guys liked a girl that was like 'one of the guys,' but Matt had always been drawn toward the sexy, older-woman types -- mature, drop-dead gorgeous, and sensuous. Aurora was the one, glaring exception, and once in awhile he considered the meaning of it, but he never really got anywhere before he gave up -- because, really, what did it matter? It didn't, and so there wasn't any reason to think about it.

"Matt, get off your ass and help me out!" Aurora's snapped voice pierced his mind.

Blinking at her for a moment as he stepped out of his thoughts, he asked, "What do you want?"

She pulled a hand out of the depths of the metal engine and, fingers dripping with grease, pointed at the rag bin, "Get me a rag."

He looked down at the box, and asked plaintively, "My boxers?"

"Yeah, whatever. Give me your boxers." She rolled her eyes as he laughed, carrying over the grease-covered undergarments to her outstretched hand.

Leaning on the edge of the car where there was a minimal amount of grease, he followed her hand with his eyes as it plunged into the metal mass again, working on one part or another. His eyes swept up her bare arm to the cut oozing dark red blood on her upper arm, to her shoulder where the short sleeves were rolled up, and then finally past her neck and up to her sweat-beaded face with an oil smear on her cheek. And he found it strangely attractive.

Without thought, he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and kissed the side of her neck, mumbling that she was beautiful.

And Aurora, being Aurora, swatted him aside and replied that she was busy.

* * *

A/N: I'M SORRY! It's summer and nice weather and I've totally been putting off writing Candy Kisses. I keep telling myself "Oh, it's too nice a day to sit inside and play on the computer... I'll go riding and write when it gets dark out." and then I'm all worn out from riding and don't want to write!

But I'm laid up for awhile from a mixture of flooding in the area and flying face-first over the head of my tallest horse, and so I swore to myself that I'd work on Candy Kisses while I'm not riding.

And for those curious about my dead computer... it's been replaced! The new computer is being acclimated (AKA files and hardware are being moved from the old one to the new one) and then it's all done. -lulz-

(Because I'm sure you were all -deathly curious- about my computer. :P )


	26. Chapter Twenty One Point Five II

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter Twenty-One-Point-Five**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **Um... maybe a bit of innuendo?

**Summary:** Brandy thought she had a pretty good eye for love. She could've been Cupid's wingman, so long as he compensated her for the time-consuming travel around the world.

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Twenty-One-Point-Five**

"**Brandy-Point-Five"**

(Ya'll remember Brandy, right? XD )

Brandy was a married woman.

She'd been with Nick for nearly two years prior to that marriage, and before him there had been a multitude of other men in her life.

On top of her vast experience in love, she owned a bar -- she'd played witness to the creation of many relationships, both long term and short-lived, true love and chemically induced love.

Brandy thought she had a pretty good eye for love. She could've been Cupid's wingman, so long as he compensated her for the time-consuming travel around the world.

And so, when she first saw Aurora and Matt settled in a quiet corner of her tavern, holding some deep discussion over half-eaten fries and burgers, she couldn't help but to study them.

The pair returned often enough, consistently ordering their fries and burgers, consistently holding down the same table in the corner, and occasionally having a good-natured quarrel over how Matt could stand to eat fries "sprinkled with ground evil," and why Aurora is so whole-heartedly against the use of pepper.

Brandy liked to believe that she was watching young love blossom. Nick thought she was reading too many romance novels.

Whichever the cause, Brandy pressed Aurora for any morsel of information, and after many thinly-veiled girl talks (and a handful of blatant questions), she managed to pick up on a poorly kept relationship. What they needed, she thought, was a little push.

Aurora had just turned nineteen the day Brandy chose to prod them along.

The young couple-to-be was in their usual spot, a slightly darker corner (because Matt claimed the fluorescent lights hurt his eyes), leaning over red plastic baskets and crumpled checker-pattern wrappers, a stray French fry marking some invisible line down the center of the table. The smoke-fog seemed to offer a fairy-tale effect to the scene, making it seem almost magical. The only thing, Brandy thought, that detracted from the set up was the smell of smoke and alcohol. The pair carried on a casual conversation, the topic drifting languidly from work to gas prices to mutual friends, until eventually they weren't even talking, simply sitting back and sipping their drinks. There was just something in the air, Brandy thought; maybe it was the holiday, maybe it was the drunken man dancing with the coat rack, or maybe it was those two, off in their own world.

Brandy took her chance. She casually swept over to the table, parting the smoke-fog like a goddess swooping in to perform a miracle. Dropping a set of keys atop the stray French fry, she spoke quietly, "There's a bedroom upstairs, lovebirds."

Matt and Aurora turned red and protested and complained, but Brandy made her graceful exit, plastic baskets and paper waste in hand, "Your meal is on me. In celebration."

Nick glanced at his wife as she dumped her armload on the counter.

"You're really meddlesome, Bran. Did I ever tell you that?"

"And you love me for it." She replied sweetly, kissing his cheek. Humming cheerily, she moved down the counter to attend to a customer.

Brandy covertly watched the couple -- if they knew they were being watched, nothing would happen. Such was the fickleness of such a vulnerable relationship. The pair didn't speak, didn't even look at eachother… but they didn't leave, either. Until finally, after a long moment, Aurora's small hand slid across the tabletop and took the keys as if they were sacred. Matt looked to her, and the two wordlessly came to an agreement. He stood, offering his hand to Aurora. The girl cautiously glanced around, unsure, before taking the proffered hand. Fingers entwined, they slipped through the door that led them to Brandy and Nick's apartment.

Smiling, Barndy leaned on Nick, "Hey… I can hold down the fort. Go out and get us a hotel room for the night."

Nick rose his eyebrows in amusement and chuckled, "Presumptuous, aren't we?"


	27. Chapter Twenty Two

Title: Candy Kisses Chapter nineteen

**Title:** Candy Kisses Chapter Twenty-Two**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **Maybe a tiny spoiler of the blink-and-you'll-miss-it persuasion.

**Summary:** "Looks like I'm gonna be gone awhile, so try not to get too lonely."

**Candy Kisses**

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

_November 27, 2009_

"Looks like I'm gonna be gone awhile, so try not to get too lonely."

"Oh, believe me, I'll be counting the minutes."

Matt's chuckle sounded strange over the crackly phone connection, making him seem ever more distant. She sighed lightly and shut down her laptop.

"Come back safe, alright, Matt? This Kira guy… he seems pretty scary."

"Don't worry about that. Mello says that Kira needs a name and a face to kill someone." The fact that his real name was unknown was left unsaid; anyone out of Whammy's knew that.

"Yeah, but… " she sighed again, not sure how to voice her concern, and finally decided on, "I wish I coulda gone with you is all. I… used to live in Japan, you know."

"Serious? You never said anything about--" there was a shout in the background, and Matt cut off his sentence to reply. When he came back, he told her, "Sorry, gotta go. Later." And after she'd said her goodbye, she could faintly hear him yelling _'Geez, keep your shirt on! I'm co--' _beforethe line went dead.

Aurora hung up and stared at the handset for a few minutes, as if it held some secret code, before getting up to find Eliza's cell phone number. She'd probably want to know, after all.

Earlier that day, Matt had gone to meet up with Mello, and now the two of them were shipping off to Japan to follow some possible Kira leads (one of which, Matt had informed her, was prone to flouncing about in a short skirt.)

Aurora felt ill. She wanted to call Matt back and give him some reason to stay here.

"Aurora? Are you still there?" Eliza's voice was clear; the redhaired girl even picked up on the worried note in her voice.

"Yeah, I… Yeah." Shaking her head once, to clear her thoughts, Aurora added, "Matt's not here, and I'm not feeling well. Maybe we could get dinner another night?"

"Where's Matt at?" a pause, and then Eliza asked, "Do you want me to come over?"

"He… Mello dragged him off after Kira, he said. Japan."

There was silence on the other end, and then the small echo, "Japan?"

"Yeah. That's all I know – you know how Mello is. Everything is top secret, right down to what color his underwear are." She tried to stay upbeat. Her stomach tied itself in some intricate knots.

Eliza didn't laugh, "Aurora, I'm coming over there." And then the line went dead.

Aurora sighed heavily and drooped over the couch. Dawn whined and jumped on the cushions beside her.

Eliza had been bunking at Levi's apartment, about a half-hour drive from where she'd lived with Matt and Aurora. They'd planned to meet at some restaurant in town, to celebrate Levi's promotion at work or something. Aurora had some sneaking suspicion that it was a cover for another of Eliza's couple-coming-out schemes. Ever since the dark-haired girl had moved out with her boyfriend, the house had been deemed the 'Matt/Aurora Love Shack' and it was an unspoken understanding among their friends that the two were an 'in-the-closet couple' that just needed some prodding.

But, truth be told, nothing changed. Matt kept his hands on his video games, Aurora kept her hands on her cars, and they both kept their hands off eachother.

A red flush touched the girl's cheeks as a bit of disappointment crept into her mind.

Maybe she had a fever…

The front door opened, startling the girl, and Eliza came in with Levi in tow.

"What's Matt's cell phone number? How dare he leave his girlfriend suffering at home while he goes off to play!" Eliza raged as she bent over her friend, "You don't look so good…"

Levi brushed his fingers over her forehead and commented offhandedly, "I'll go make some soup." Before disappearing into the kitchen.

Eliza sat down, studying Aurora's profile until the redhead turned away, "What do you want? I'll be fine. I probably just ate something rotten."

"You're worried about something, aren't you? Don't lie." Eliza's voice was low.

"So what if I am?"

"Is it Matt?"

Aurora fell silent.

"He's not stupid, Aurora. He wouldn't run off on some suicide mission. And anyway, Mello's with him."

"'Kira needs a name and a face to kill someone.' That's what Matt said." Aurora paused, "But Kira's smart, too. He figured out L's name; he could figure out Matt and Mello's name."

Eliza didn't have a response for that.

"Something isn't right, Eliza. I can just feel it."

A/N: This chapter was primarily thought up on the two-hour drive from the nearest anime convention (where I was cosplaying as Matt) while listening to Tokio Hotel. Yeah, not too sure where the idea came from, but….

I've resurrected this story, none-the-less! So cookies and Matt-love for all!


	28. Epilogue

Title: Candy Kisses Prologue

**Title:** Candy Kisses Epilogue**  
Author: **Endless-Kaoru**  
Rating: **M**  
Disclaimer:** If I owned Death Note, there would be a lot more Matt, Mello, and Takeda, a lot less Soichirou, and Misa wouldn't exist.

**Warnings: **Um… spoiler/character death, I suppose?**  
Summary:** "Set low in the ground, small gravestones were set, all with only one name and nothing more."

Candy Kisses

**Epilogue**

A light breeze rustled the grasses where a girl stood on a hill, over looking Whammy's Orphanage. Set low in the ground, small gravestones were set, all with only one name and nothing more.

Aurora stepped lightly between them, reverently, until she found the one she was looking for.

Behind her, standing near their car, Eliza and Levi watched her, silent.

The red-haired girl looked down at the tiny stone rectangle, and knelt to feel its surface as she whispered the name engraved upon it, "Matt…"

There were several long moments of silence, as tears began to drip down her face. Eliza came over to support her friend, her own tears of mourning resurfacing. Levi hung back, eyes sad as he watched the girls.

"I miss him, too…" Eliza said, lowly, as if only to herself.

Aurora nodded, wiping her eyes on her wrist, before proclaiming, "I loved him…"

The dark-haired girl looked up, only startled to hear the words, before holding her friend closer, "I think he knows."


End file.
